


You're home

by fangirl_from_the_bookstore



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Angst, Engagement, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, I have no idea about the things soldiers are going through, I hope I am depicting it right, Injured Stiles, Letters, Love Letters, Lydia is becoming a doctor, Lydia is studying medicine, Making Out, Nightmares, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Stiles and Lydia are hopeless romantics, Stiles joined the Army, Stiles returns home, Stydia, Talking About The Future, adding tags as I go, but if not then please tell me, looooots of fluff, mention of the 10 year plan, proposal, scott is a veterinarian, soldier!Stiles, student!lydia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-09
Updated: 2019-03-04
Packaged: 2019-09-14 21:28:09
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 31,674
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16920705
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fangirl_from_the_bookstore/pseuds/fangirl_from_the_bookstore
Summary: Stiles was standing there, a smile plastered over his whole face. He dropped his bag and the flowers on the floor and opened his arms. Lydia almost made them both fall down when she jumped into his arms. She threw her arms around his neck and wrapped her legs around him.





	1. Returning Home

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guyss,  
> I am here with another story. I had to write it down, it was always on my mind.  
> I have no idea where this story will go or how long it's gonna be. Just know, that updates might kome sporadically, since work is also happening, soo....
> 
> Also, I have no idea about what soldiers are going through and I hope I did it right, but if not, then please tell me!
> 
> Have fun reading it ♥

It had been 4 months, 2 weeks and 2 days since Lydia had last said goodbye to Stiles. After highschool he had joined the Army, he wanted to earn some money for his studies and he had a good chance of getting a scholarship. His dad had called some people and he himself had written an awesome motivation letter as to why he was perfect for the job. After all these years with supernatural incidences and normal human stuff his dad and him were running low on money. Noah hated the idea of letting his son join the army where he wouldn't be in a safe environment AGAIN, but Stiles had promised him to move to a different city after his service, so that Lydia and him could finally take a breather. Plus working in the army was always a good thing if you want to have a future job in law enforcement. Stiles had always wanted to safe and to help people and this job just seemed right for him.

 

However it was still hard for his friends, since there the obligatory 4 years Stiles had to serve. After that he was on reserve, which meant that they could call him back in anytime. But Stiles didn't plan on going back any time soon after finishing his duty, he couldn't wait to finally start a future with Lydia. The first year had been the worst for all of them. The sheriff was always worrying about everything since Stiles had joined the Army and knew, what things his son must be going through. Lydia had done some research, but after a while she just got more scared and never did it again. There were also Scott and his mum, who kept writing Stiles letters or sending him photos or chocolate. Scott had begun his job at the veterinary clinic and helped Deaton with his clients, supernatural and non-supernatural. He still felt like it was his duty to protect this town and so he decided to stay. They often kept him updated on everything and most of the time he received several letters from Scott, his dad and Lydia, and it helped him feeling a lot better. Most of the time though he felt terrified and alone.

 

Stiles actually liked the whole physical training and the boot camp. He loved to occupy his mind with other stuff than finding escape routes or figuring out how to kill a wendigo. He felt healthier and somehow calmer in a way. But when they had begun going out on patrols and actually experienced war, he had soon begun to regret joining. But he had also known, that they needed the financial aid, so he pulled through. Plus quitting had never been an option for him.

 

Lydia and him had kept in touch through letters as well, so that it was easier for both of them when he was away for a long time. Sometimes they could even talk over the phone when Sties was staying somewhere safe. But most of the time he was at a place with neither reception nor internet, so letters were the only way.

 

However Stiles hadn't planned on staying THAT long in the army... At first he had just wanted to stay the obligatory 4 years and then come back to his girlfriend, to his Lydia, who he had loved since the beginning of time. To be completely honest, it took a while for both of them to find each other, but once Lydia took a second glance and actually saw the side of him who would do anything to safe his friends, she had completely fallen for him. Their first goodbye had been bitter sweet and involved a lot of tears and promises. But when Stiles had told Lydia that his service was gonna be longer than expected Lydia felt like he couldn't breathe. Every second that Stiles was in the army, her nightmares became worse and worse. She saw him dying, crying and screaming on the floor. So whenever Stiles' letter told her, that he would come home for a few days she couldn't sleep, but this time out of excitement.

 

They would talk and talk for hours and just lay together in bed. A wide smile all over their faces. Stiles would tell her everything he could about the war, which wasn't much, but it always helped him process the things he saw or did. In return Lydia would tell him stuff about her studies and after a while Stiles felt whole again. Lydia always thought that Stiles would be bored after hearing all the names of the muscles in their bodies or how emotions are processed, but it actually helped to take his mind off things. She had started to study medicine. Obviously. After all these years fighting for their lifes she realised that none of them really had any idea about treating wounds or the human body in general. She had wanted to study medicine anyway and now the motivation was even stronger. She wanted to protect her friends in the best way possible.

 

Stiles had been in the army for almost 5 years now. Over the years Stiles had become quieter and quieter and he had stopped his overall jittery behaviour. He was growing up way too fast. But whenever he was home his previous self would come out after a few hours or days. And these few hours where he was happy and relaxed were filled with laughter and happy tears.

 

Lydia was sitting in class on a Friday afternoon, trying to pay attention to the human nerve system and neurotransmitters. The last letter she had received was already 5 weeks old. It was odd to not hear from Stiles this long and she got more scared every day that passed. But she also knew that she could trust her gut and so somehow she was certain that he was okay. Which was even more odd, because why hasn't he replied? She knew that these thoughts would just drive her crazy, so she tried distracting herself and actually focused back on the slides on the screen for a while. Her studies occupied her and it was sometimes quite challenging, but she welcomed the change to high school, where most of the time she had felt bored. For a few minutes she was able to listen to the professor, but then her mind wandered again. She was looking out of the window and saw a man walking over the grass towards her building. He was tall and lean, but strong muscles were under his uniform. _Wait, uniform?_ She harshly sucked in a breath and tears were forming in her eyes.

 

“No”, she whispered, because it was Stiles. Stiles in his uniform with a bouquet of flowers.

 

Before she knew what she was doing, she jumped up from her seat and tripped over the bags on her way to the door. Her sight was blinded with tears and her feet just wouldn't let her run fast enough. She bursted through the doors of her building and ran across the grass. Stiles was standing there, a smile plastered over his whole face. He dropped his bag and the flowers on the floor and opened his arms. Lydia almost made them both fall down when she jumped into his arms. She threw her arms around his neck and wrapped her legs around him. Stiles hugged her tightly.

 

“Oh my god”, she breathed and heard Stiles laugh. He spun her around and she started laughing as well. Both of them were crying, but it were happy tears. When Stiles sat her down she had her arms still fiercly wrapped around his neck. Stiles hummed happily. Lydia looked absolutely beautiful.

 

“God, I missed you”, he said. Lydia laughed in return. She slowly removed her arms and looked at him. Stiles was still one of the most beautiful things she had ever seen. He had tears in his eyes as well and his cheeks were flushed. But Lydia also saw the new scars he got and how dull his eyes looked. He looked older and had sunspots on his face from all his time outside on patrol. She stroke his face in admiration.

 

“You're home”, she breathed and couldn't help but smile.

 

“I am”, he said and pulled her into a kiss. The familiar feeling of their lips touching left them both breathless. It just felt so _good_. New tears were forming in Lydia's eyes. When they broke the kiss both were smiling and almost gleaming with joy. Lydia realised that they were still on her campus and quickly turned around to see her friends smiling at them. Even the professor looked happy. She shyly smiled and waved at them. 

 

“I am just gonna grab my stuff and then we'll get out of here, okay?”, she smiled back at Stiles and kissed him.

 

“Sounds good to me”, he responded happily. He picked up his bag and gave Lydia the flowers.

 

“Thank you”, she genuinely said and smelled them. It were her favourite of course. She took his hand and he kissed it. Lydia was about to burst with happiness. They walked back into the building and when they went inside the lecture hall everybody suddenly started clapping and cheering. Lydia shyly smiled and hid her face in the crook of Stiles' neck. He pulled her close and smiled as well.

 

“I am sorry for the inconveniences, Sir”, Stiles said and shook the hand the professor held out.

 

“That's totally fine, thank you for your service”, the professor smiled at Stiles. Stiles just nodded shortly. He always felt weird when people thank him, but also kind of proud. Lydia quickly gathered all her things and smiled back at her friends. As soon as she was finished she walked back to Stiles and wrapped her arm around him. Lydia nodded to the professor.

 

“Bye”, she said and felt super awkward when almost everybody returned it. They were both still smiling when they made their way out of the building.

 

“Now, tell me everything!”, Lydia said. The entire way home they didn't let go of each other, it almost seemed like they couldn't even if they wanted to. Stiles told her that he had arrived on Tuesday, but first visited his dad. Lydia wasn't mad about that at all, she totally understood. She could imagine the face his dad made when Stiles had been standing in the door. Stiles also told her, that he had spent the last days at home just relaxing and spending time with his dad and then went over to Scott's. He told them both to not say a word to Lydia, he wanted to surprise her. He knew that Lydia had lectures all week and so he decided to come by today.

 

“I was hoping on spending the weekend with you”, he said, “I have to leave on Sunday morning again.”

 

The thought of him leaving in two days again made her stomach turn but she decided to not think about that right now.

 

“Of course!”, she smiled up to him, “I won't let you out of my sight.”

 

“Mhm”, he just hummed happily and kissed her head. Lydia was living on campus since it was the cheapest option, so her dorm wasn't far away from uni and they reached it in roughly 10 minutes. Lydia opened the front door and they went up to her room. When Lydia closed the door to her apartment both of them let out a breath none of them knew they had been holding. Then Lydia rushed forward and hugged Stiles tightly. She inhaled deeply and rested her head on his chest. Stiles' strong arms embraced her and he tightened the hug even more.

 

“I still can't believe you are here”, Lydia whispered and slowly stepped back. Stiles took her face in his hands, they were rough against her skin.

 

“It still feels like I am dreaming”, Lydia continued and smiled up to him.

 

“Nope”, Stiles said with a chuckle, “I am right here”, he said and quickly pecked her on the lips. Lydia chuckled as well and turned around to open the blinds of her windows. Warm sunlight flooded the room and made her hair look like fire. Stiles smiled softly to himself and unpacked his bags. Lydia made some tee and kept glancing at Stiles. It still felt surreal to finally have him here again. Stiles finished unpacking and went to sit on the bed next to Lydia. And then they were kissing. And it felt like both of them could finally breathe. Lydia's hands wandered under Stiles' uniform and over his skin. She felt small scars under her fingertips, but didn't let her mind wander there. Now was not the time for that.

 

She quickly removed his shirt and Stiles did the same with hers. When Lydia looked up she saw Stiles' amazing body, which always left her speechless, but this time more scars were covering his skin. Some spots were still purple or yellow from previous fights and her expression changed. Stiles noticed that and took her hands in his. That made Lydia look at him.

 

“I am fine”, he said and emphasized every word, “we just ran in some complications before my departure.”

 

He smiled timidly and Lydia returned it.

 

“Okay”, she whispered and kissed him again.

 

“Sorry for not telling you that I was coming home”, Stiles whispered between kisses, “I wanted it to be a surprise.”

 

“It's okay”, Lydia said, “I am just happy you are here.”

 

“Yeah, me too, totally, I am just... half-way through my plan I realised how scary it must be to not get any news from me and...I am sorry”, he sighed.

 

“No, it's okay”, Lydia said and Stiles looked up, “I totally get that. I mean, yeah, I was worried about you, but I also knew to trust my gut. So deep down I somehow always knew that you were okay.”

 

Stiles huffed out a small laugh.

 

“Okay”, he quietly said.

 

They went back to kissing and soon both their pants were scattered on the floor as well. Their hands never left their bodies and they kissed until both their lips were deep red. The tee was long forgotten and still standing on the counter. At one point both of them were laying in bed in their underwear, slowly stroking skin and soft smiles on their faces. Both of them loved the feeling of their skin touching and laying in bed right here right now relaxed them both immensely. Stiles moved closer and took Lydia in his arms. He pulled her close and she hugged him tightly as well. They soon fell asleep, feeling safe in each others arms. For the first time in a long time Stiles felt...okay. Meeting his dad and Scott and now being here with Lydia felt right and at home.

 

He slowly drifted into sleep, but in his dreams he was again being haunted by everything that had happened.

 


	2. Feeling At Peace

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter guys! This one if full of fluff and angst and I loooooved writing it!
> 
> Enjoy ♥

There was smoke everywhere. And people were shouting commands and cries for help. They were in a jungle and the climate was hot and humid, but Stiles was shivering. He heard one of his buddies shouting some stuff next to him, but Stiles couldn't focus. Everything was sort of blurry and it felt like the world was spinning. He didn't know where to fire his gun, because he heard gunshots everywhere. Stiles tried to think about what his training had taught him, but nothing had prepared him for _this_. Suddenly he saw a shadow to the right, but before he could focus on it he was being tackled to the ground and the air was knocked out of his lungs.

 

He fell onto a log and could already tell that this was about to leave a mark. The man on top of him had a mask of terror on his face and there was mud everywhere. Stiles tried to pull the man away from him, but he had a fierce grip on the straps of Stiles' backpack. Stiles tried kicking and punching, but the man didn't move and slowly Stiles got more and more terrified. _What if this is how I die?_ He thought to himself and felt tears in his eyes. His breaths were coming out in forced puffs, but he wouldn't give up fighting. He somehow was able to turn them both around, so that he was on top of the other man and then punched him in the face with all he had. This stunned the other man long enough to let go of him and then Stiles jumped up, ready to run. But before he could, he felt his leg being held my someone. He fell face first to the floor and saw small stars in his vision.

 

He was being thrown around and felt another punch in his side. By now he was terrified. But then suddenly the weight was lifted off of him and he saw the sky again. Then there was a loud bang and he felt something wet being splashed over his hands when he instinctively covered his face. He turned around and saw Bobby with a gun in his hand. And to his feet laid his attacker with a huge hole in his neck. Then Bobby was looking at him and shouted just one word. But it was enough for Stiles' survival instincts to kick in.

 

“Run!”

 

And he did. They both did and they ran and ran until their lungs were about to burst. And then they ran even more. Stiles realized where they were going and pulled Bobby to the left. They had to get to the clearing and wait for backup. They nearly tripped, but the adrenaline in their muscles kept them going. And then finally they saw the jungle clear up and they were out in the open. They stopped and fell onto their knees to cough and try to catch their breaths. Stiles immediately took out his walkie-talkie and started screaming for backup. His ears were ringing and it was hard to focus on anything else than his racing heart.

 

Stiles jerked awake, a shaky breath left his mouth. He knew exactly what just happened. It had been his last patrol before he would go home. He remembered the terror he had felt back then. He took a few more shaky breaths and closed his eyes to focus. He saw Lydia sleeping next to him, her hair all over the pillow and her face. Her breaths came out even and she looked breathtaking. Stiles took a strand of hair and wrapped it around his finger. Of course it was super soft. Stiles smiled to himself. The terrors of the nightmare were still in his bones, but he shuffled closer to Lydia and hid his face in the crook of her neck. Lydia must have noticed something, she turned around and lazily threw her arm around Stiles. She sleepily pecked him on his buzzcut. Stiles huffed out a laugh and Lydia sighed happily.

 

“You okay?”, she asked.

 

“Yeah”, he answered and really meant it, “now I am.”

 

“Good”, Lydia said and yawned. She pulled Stiles closer and soon both of them fell back asleep in each others arms.

 

When the sun was shining through the blinds Stiles woke up. But this time it was entirely peaceful. He took a deep breath. Deep down he felt safe and at peace and it felt amazing. He stretched his arms and legs and heard his joints crack. His muscles were just always so stiff nowadays which lead to tensions in almost every part of is body. Lydia next to him was slowly waking up as well. She let out a big yawn and then sleepily looked at Stiles.

 

“God, you are absolutely adorable”, Stiles laughed softly. Lydia looked at him through her half-closed lids.

 

“Says the handsome man laying nex to me”, she mumbled and shuffled closer to Stiles. That made Stiles huff out a small laugh again.

 

For the next hour or so both of them just stayed in bed. Arms fiercly wrapped around each other, a small smile on both their faces. Every now and then Stiles kissed Lydia on the forehead, on her hair, her cheeks or anywhere else. Most of the time Lydia then moved her head up and returned the kiss. Both of them didn't really care about morning breath, after all these years fighting through everything their boundaries were long gone.

 

Lydia was slowly stroking over Stiles' skin. Her fingers lazily moving in circles up and down his back. She went over his moles, which felt like little bumps on his skin. Lydia knew how much Stiles loved it when she stroke his skin like that. But she loved it too. Then her fingertip got caught on a big and bulky scar and she could feel Stiles shiver under her touch. She immediately pulled her hand back.

 

“I am so sorry”, she quickly said and shuffled back a bit.

 

“No, no it's fine”, Stiles said and pulled her close again, but his voice shivered a bit, “it's just...”, he exhaled deeply.

 

“I don't think you wanna hear that”, he quietly said. That made Lydia pull back again. She scrunched her brows in confusion. Stiles contemplated not telling her, but he also knew how stubborn Lydia can be. So he took another deep breath and started playing with Lydia's hair.

 

“It uhm...it happened about a few months ago. We were checking a city and were led into an ambush. Nobody really knew how it happened, but suddenly they were guys shouting and pointing their guns at us. Some of them were barely older than me...”, he trailed off. Lydia waited patiently for him to talk again. After a few seconds of silence he cleared his throat.

 

“Anyway, they uhm brought us into their hideout or something. They wanted information and the way they tried to get it was...uhm...well I guess you can think of a way”, his voice was barely a whisper at the end of the sentence.

 

Lydia didn't know what to say. She was at a loss for words. Stiles moved up his glance and looked into her eyes.

 

“Told you, you weren't gonna like it”, he whispered, a sad smile on his face. Lydia forced a smile on her face in return. She then moved her hand to his cheek.

 

“I know that this is all horrible and I couldn't ever...”, she stopped and took a small breath, “just...just know that I am here for you. And if you wanna talk about it, then I will listen, but if not, then that's okay, too. I told you that before and I still mean it”, she smiled at him.

 

The smile Stiles gave Lydia was full of love. He moved closer and kissed her long and deeply. When he broke the kiss Lydia had a dopey grin on her face.

 

“I know”, Stiles said, “I am just not allowed to talk about a lot of things...or don't really know if I can”, he added quietly.

 

“It's just...sometimes I can still feel it? Or hear it...”, he broke off. He often found himself seeing shadows everywhere. It's like the terror never really left his bones. But staying with his friends and his dad helped immensely.

 

Both of them had theses conversations over and over again. And Lydia still didn't have an answer for that. She couldn't even imagine what Stiles must go through out there. She just hoped that these hours here could help take his mind off things.

 

“Okay, well...then how about we just stay in bed, cook something nice and walk around town? Just like we always do”, she smiled and kissed him.

 

“Mhm”, Stiles hummed happily and kissed her back. He knew how hard it must be for his friends or for her to be okay with this stuff. But he appreciated, that she always had some things to occupy his mind. He kissed Lydia again and propped himself up on his ellbow.

 

“But first, breakfast”, he smiled and got up.

 

He opened the cabinet and took out two cups while putting on the kettle. Lydia smiled softly to himself. Stiles was beautiful. He was still just in his boxers and looked...relaxed. His hair was short since he mostly had to wear a helmet and it reminded her of the earlier days when he was this hyperactive kid who kept following her anywhere. It had been kind of obsessive and sometimes even a bit creepy, but Lydia had somehow enjoyed it nevertheless. Now he was this handsome man, who would take a bullet for his friends and made Lydia's heart flutter whenever he was around. Stiles caught her staring and looked at her. She hid her face in the pillow and Stiles laughed. He continued making the pancake batter and started humming a melody. Lydia recognized it and moved to her phone. Suddenly “Everbody talks” by Neon Trees was playing.

 

Stiles looked at her with a huge grin and then started to do a full performance using the spoon as a mic. Lydia was now laughing as well. Just before the refrain started Stiles pointed with the spoon at her. It took a second and then she started singing as well. She got up from the bed, still in her underwear as well, and then both of them were dancing in the kitchen. Soon they were covered in small splashes of pancake batter since they kept jumping around each other. The song was over and both of then were out of breath. Stiles took Lydia's head in his hand and kissed her deeply.

 

“Thank you”, he said after breaking the kiss. Lydia just smiled and kissed him back. She then took a small towel and wiped the batter from both their bodies.

 

“Alright, how about we actually _cook_ the pancakes now?”, she chuckled.

 

“Sounds like a plan”, Stiles laughed. While the pancakes were cooking Lydia switched on her laptop and went on Netflix. Watching _Friends_ was their tradition. They always watched it when they were together and whever she opened Netflix and saw the _Continue Watching_ section, she thought about him. 

 

They jumped back into bed and ate their pancakes in silence, except for some occational chuckle. After they finished Lydia moved in between Stiles' legs and laid back against his chest. He wrapped his arms around her stomach and rested his chin on her head. They watched two more episodes before deciding to go out into town. Stiles got into his casual wear, which was a deep red shirt and jeans. He threw over his black bomber jacket as a finishing touch.

 

“Look at you”, Lydia said and poked him in the stomach.

 

“Do I look alright?”, he said with a smirk.

 

“Oh I think that I have to be on the look out for other girls trying to steal you”, Lydia said jokingly. Stiles threw his arm around her shoulder and they made their way out of the apartment.

 

It was a warm autumn day, but dark clouds were forming in the distance. For now however it was perfect. The leaves were a beautiful golden colour, some of them were red, some were dark brown, and the wind made them all fly through the air. They went hand-in-hand and the leaves crumbled under their feet. Lydia loved that sound. They started talking about anything and everything, ranging from movie reviews to deep talks about the future. Lydia wanted to finish her study in the standard period of study and after that both wanted to move some place safe. Preferably in between nice parks, maybe even next to a river. Both of them wanted kids, so they needed a garden and several floors in their house.

 

“Uh and we definitely need to adopt a dog! Studies have shown that children growing up with animals learn important social skills”, Lydia said and could aready picture it.

 

Stiles smiled and huffed a laugh.

 

“I see you have it all figured out”, he said.

 

“Well of course, you're not getting rid off me so soon”, Lydia said with a smirk.

 

“Not planning on”, Stiles smiled and kissed her on the head, “are we letting our kid play Lacrosse?”

 

“Oh definitely!”, Lydia laughed. They had stopped joking about this a long time ago. Now it was serious. Both wanted this and it felt amazing picturing it all.

 

They went to their favourite little bookstore at the edge of town. Nowadays people were buying everything online, so theses small stores were getting less and less common in the cities. Which was sad, because the smell of fresh books was one of the best things in the entire world. Plus the owner, of the bookstore, Adam, knew almost the entire town and was always up for some nice chit-chat. Him and Stiles talked about baseball and new books that were out on the market. It was very difficult keeping books in the army since they were always on the run, but Stiles always tried to bring a new book everytime. Otherwise it was just too boring. Luckily there were small paperbook versions of some books so Stiles always had something to look forward to when he entered the bookstore. This time it was a copy of _The Road Less Traveled_.

 

“Now I know that this book is quite old, but it is beautifully written. This is a story about love and how to find yourself“, Adam told him. He had been the owner of the store for almost 10 years, so he knew a thing or two about books. Lydia and Stiles always trusted his instinct on new books and often only bought them when Adam had recommended it to them. Most of the time he was correct and the books were different and exciting.

 

“It's supposed to be pretty good, my son had read it and he would definitely recommend it”, he continued.

 

“That sounds promising, thank you”, Stiles said genuinely and paid for the book.

 

Lydia had been browsing on her own and now walked back to the counter.

 

“Found something?”, Adam asked him.

 

“I am still reading _Everything I Never Told You_ so it might take a while until I need something new. It's an amazing book!”

 

“I knew you would like it”, Adam smiled knowingly.

 

“Well there is a character with the name _Lydia_ in it, soooo”, Lydia laughed.

 

They continued talking about Lydia's book for a while and then left the store. Sadly the sun was hiding behind the clouds and the wind was picking up. Which was just the perfect excuse for them to go into the cafe nearby. They ordered some warm drinks. Stiles chose a Vanilla Latte and Lydia settled for a Chai Tea. After buying some cakes they sat down next to the window. Both enjoyed their drinks for a while.

 

“Remember when I took you here on our first official date?”, Stiles asked and smiled at Lydia over the edge of his glass. Lydia smiled softly and hummed in response.

 

“You were suuuper nervous when we got here”, she laughed, “it's not like we had never been together just the two of us before.”

 

“I know, I know”, Stiles chuckled as well, “but it was the first time that I did the whole 'do you wanna go out with me' and it had felt different.”

 

“Yeah, it had felt different to me, too”, Lydia smiled softly, “it took me like an hour to figure out what to wear.”

 

“You always need an hour to figure out what you are gonna wear”, Stiles said with a small laugh and Lydia just sticked her tongue out at him.

 

They continued talking about the old days, about teachers which were the most annoying or about pack meetings which most of the time ended in sleepovers. It hadn't always been bad, but they were both still relieved, that the days of fighting supernatural creatures slowly got to an end. Scott was still the protector of Beacon Hills, nothing was gonna change that, but he had taught Liam a trick or two and now mostly the new pack dealt with this kind of stuff. Lydia and the others had to start their own life at some point.

 

After Stiles paid for them they went back out into the windy afternoon and strolled through the city. It was now almost 4pm and the sun had already started to set. They often went to the cinema, but Lydia always checked out the movies on google beforehand. She had made that mistake once in the beginning where they went into a movie and it had flashback scenes of war in them. Stiles hadn't said anything during the first half movie, but his grip on Lydia's hand had become so strong, that they had decided to leave the cinema. Stiles had been white as a sheet and his hands had been sweaty and cold. Lydia never wanted this to repeat, so nowadays she always made sure, that there were no war related scenes in the movies they were gonna watch. This time however nothing was really worth watching, so they just walked around for a little while and ended up at the park.

 

By now the sun was setting and turned the forest into a golden glow. Stiles looked at Lydia, who was talking about something, and her hair was glowing in the sun. She looked happy and healthy. Stiles knew how much stress she must feel whenever he was gone and hated that he put them all through that. After his first two services he had come back and had tried to explain to Lydia that he didn't want her to be in pain just because of him. He had known that pushing her away would have been impossible for him, but he had just wanted the best for her. But because she was Lydia she had shut him up pretty fast and had told him that she wasn't gonna leave him. Ever. So Stiles had stopped pushing her away and was now very happy that he did. Having Lydia her with him made everything easier. Of course his dad and Scott and Melissa and everybody else also played an important role, but Lydia had always been special to him.

 

Back home they decided on making some pasta for dinner. While Stiles started boiling the water, Lydia chopped some onions and tomatos for the sauce. They cooked in silence, but it wasn't tense. They were both totally fine with just being around each other. When the pasta was in the pot and Lydia finished preparing the sauce she went to her laptop and switched it on. She then clicked on the next episode of _Friends_ and prepared the table. Soon after that everything was finished and they sat down.

 

“That's really good!”, Stiles moaned happily, “you have no idea what they give us to eat sometimes!”

 

Lydia laughed.

 

“I am happy you like it, it's pretty easy too”, she said, “just chop up a bunch of vegetables and put them in the pan and _voilà_ you have yourself a sauce.”

 

Stiles just happily munched on the food and Lydia smiled softly at the sight of that. He was finally being his usual self again. They ate in silence for a while, except for sound of  _ Friends _ in the back.

 

“So, how is your dad?”, Lydia asked Stiles.

 

“Well you know, he is getting old”, he was quiet for a while, “but he was so happy to see me, he even made one of these cliché posters everybody makes for the airport.”

 

He chuckled at the memory of that. Lydia did, too.

 

“But sometimes I feel like...like he isn't really there, you know? Like on Tuesday for example he was looking for his glasses for about ten minutes, but he was wearing them. Or he couldn't even remember things that had happened a year ago. And sometimes I even have to help him zip up his jacket. That's...sometimes seeing him like this is hard.”

 

Lydia nodded. Her mum was getting older, too, but luckily she wasn't like that. She had become forgettful as well, but not to this extent.

 

“I know what you mean”, she said, “sometimes my mum is like this, too, forgetting stuff and all, but that's just the way it goes, you know? Getting older and all that.”

 

“Yeah I know”, Stiles sighed, “it's still hard.”

 

“It is”, Lydia agreed with a sad smile. They stayed silent for a while, it seemed like Stiles was lost in thought. His dad and him had always had a deep love for each other and a strong connection. Lydia understood that seeing his dad like that must be painful. But then Stiles looked at her and shrugged his shoulders. He smiled. There wasn't nothing he could do about it and he knew it. They finished eating and started cleaning up. Lydia was drying up the plates when Stiles started splashing her with dishwater.

 

“Hey!”, she said and laughed. She splashed back at him and soon they were covered in bubbles and water.

 

“I surrender! I surrender!”, Stiles laughed and raised his arms up in the air. Lydia smiled at him mischeviously and stopped in her movements. Her hands were still covered in bubbles, but she slowly put them down and took a towel to dry them off.

 

“Fine”, she said with a smirk and Stiles fake-fainted.

 

“Doofus”, she laughed quietly and Stiles joined her.

 

They finished soon afterwards and Lydia had just placed the last cup into the shelf when he felt two hands on her hips. She closed the door and leaned back so that her back met Stiles' chest.

 

“Hey there”, she said with a smile.

 

“Hey you”, Stiles whispered and kissed the part of her body where the neck meets the shoulders. Lydia felt goosebumps forming on her skin. She always had that reaction when he touched her. Lydia turned around and wrapped her arms around Stiles' neck.

 

“So”, she said with a smirk on her face, “what are we doing now?”

 

“I can think of one or two things”, Stiles said and kissed her.

 

“Is that so”, Lydia asked and played with the little hairs on Stiles' neck.

 

“Mhm”, he said and kissed her again. He moved his hand down to Lydia's thigh and she eagerly lifted her leg so that Stiles could lift her up. He carried her to the bed and laid her down. She had her legs still firmly wrapped around his waist so she pulled her on top of her. They never stopped kissing. Lydia hungrily removed Stiles shirt and he did the same with hers. While Lydia was fumbling with Stiles' belt his hands were roaming through her hair. One hand stroke her cheek and the other was used to prop him up. Lydia finished struggling with the belt and Stiles' pants were off in no time. He quickly spun her around so that she was on top of him and started removing her pants as well.

 

As soon as they were both only in their underwear things started to get heated. Their faces were smashed together and their hands were never still. Lydia dragged her nails along Stiles' back and he arched his back in response. He exhaled shakily and Lydia smiled in between kisses. He framed her face with his hands and deeply inhaled while he kissed her. God, he loved her so much. They continued rolling around and messing up the pillows. At one point Stiles almost knocked over her bedside lamp, which made Lydia snort out a laugh.

 

They kissed and kissed until their cheeks were flushed and their lips were deep red. Stiles moved to kiss Lydia's neck and then down to her stomach. When he kissed her just underneath her bellybutton Lydia almost forgot how to breathe. She shakily inhaled and closed her eyes. Stiles looked at her and he wasn't sure if he had ever seen something more beautiful. He moved up to her face again and kissed her on the nose. She opened her eyes and chuckled. She wrapped her arms around his neck and rolled them over so she was back on top of him. When she kissed the crook of his neck and nibbled a bit at the soft skin she heard Stiles hold his breath. She smiled to herself and kissed his throat. She loved the reaction they had on each other. Lydia then moved down and left a trail of kisses on his body. She then placed a kiss on his hip and Stiles shakily exhalted the breath he had been holding. When he looked at her she had a smirk on her face. _Revenge_ , she thought.

 

“Oh so this is how you wanna do it?”, Stiles said with a low voice and quickly rolled them around and pinned her arms over her head with one hand. The other slowly moved up the inner side of her left leg.

 

“Oh god”, Lydia breathed and closed her eyes, “you are the worst.”

 

Stiles sucked in a breath and acted hurt.

 

“Whaaat?”, he said in a high-pitched tone, “you did not say that!”

 

And then he started to tickle her. Lydia squirmed under Stiles' touch, but couldn't go anywhere, since he still had her pinned down on the bed. Stiles then quickly let go of her and sat on her stomach. Lydia was confused for a second and tried to catch her breath, but then Stiles started to tickle her feet. Lydia squealed and tried to get out from under Stiles.

 

“Say you are sorry!”, Stiles said and tickled her even harder.

 

“No no no! Please stop!”, Lydia continued squealing and laughing, “you are killing me! Stop!”

 

“Not until you apologize!”, Stiles laughed. He continued to tickle her.

 

“Okay! Okay, I am sorry!”, Lydia panted and tried to push Stiles off of her. Stiles finally stopped tickled her and Lydia collapsed back into the matress.

 

“That's more like it”, Stiles smirked and released Lydia from her grip. Lydia tried to get her breathing under control and he got off of her looking very satisfied.

 

“Are you proud of yourself?”, Lydia groaned and dragged her hands over her face.

 

“Very”, he responded and nodded. Lydia huffed out a laugh and looked at him from between her fingers. She saw Stiles grinning widely at her and couldn't help but got on her ellbow to kiss him.

 

“You are unbelievable”, she said with a smirk, “it's a good thing that I love you.”

 

“Well then it's a good thing I love you too”, he smiled at her and moved down to lay next to her. Lydia's heart was still pounding from the tickle attack, but she managed to calm down a bit.

 

Stiles opened his arms and she let her body fold around his. Stiles lazily dragged her fingers across Lydia's back and gave her a kiss on the head. She was laying on his chest and had her arm wrapped tightly around his waist. They were so happy and relaxed and just...at peace. Stiles sighed happily and pulled her closer. Lydia smiled and sighed as well. There was no place they would rather be right now.

 


	3. Leaving Again

Stiles had to leave on Sunday again and both of them had known that since Friday. Still, going to bed on Saturday felt horrible. After the whole tickle attack they were both so carefree and happy. But then they calmed down and remembered what was gonna happen tomorrow and it was like someone stabbed them in the chest and twisted their gut. Stiles exhaled deeply, but this time it wasn't out of relaxation. It was the opposite. He was starting to get terrified and his heart was starting to race. Since Lydia was still laying on his chest she could feel the fastening _babum_ and moved her head to look up at him. 

 

“Hey, it's alright”, she knew that saying that wasn't going to change anything, but it was out of her mouth before she could stop it.

 

“Yeah”, Stiles shakily exhaled again and forced a smile on his face. Lydia did the same and then laid back down. She tightly wrapped her arm around him again and tried to give him comfort. But she also knew, that Stiles had to do this on his own and she hated that. They were laying in silence, just some shaky breaths from Stiles occasionally broke that. Lydia's gut was twisting and turning and she tried desperately to think about a way to distract Stiles.

 

“You wanna watch a movie?”, she quietly said and looked at him.

 

“Sure”, he said with a smile. He noticed how it stressed Lydia to see him like that and was grateful for the distraction. Lydia got up, grabbed her laptop and laid back down. She scrolled through the homepage of _Netflix_.

 

“ _2 Fast 2 Furious_...uhm... _Hercules_ ”, she tried filtering the movies out which definitely had war related scenes in them, then she harshly sucked in a breath and a wide grin was on her face.

 

“ _High School Musical 3_!”

 

Stiles chuckled.

 

“Sure, why not?”, he said.

 

“Are you serious?”, Lydia looked at him with a confused expression.

 

“Yeah, you can never go wrong with musicals”, Stiles said and Lydia happily klicked on the movie. Stiles knew how much she loved those old _Disney_ movies and always enjoyed how much Lydia smiled during them.

 

The movie started and  _of course_ Lydia knew all the songs by heart and softly sang to them. It was a beautiful sound and Stiles relaxed more and more. Lydia obviously also knew most of the dialogue and muttered it under her breath. That often made Stiles snort out a laugh, because she even changed the tone of her voice for each character and laid down a full performance. Lydia happily grinned at him and then continued singing to  _I want it all_ . After the movie was over the overall tension in the air was long gone. They got up to make something to eat and then went back into bed. Lydia was still humming the songs and Stiles had to admit that they were pretty catchy. After the food was gone however the tension came back. The panic was slowly creeping up Stiles' bones and wrapped itself around his heart. 

 

_Are you serious??_ Stiles said to himself. He was fine just a second ago. How can his body and mind change so quickly?? First he tried shutting the thoughts out and staying here with Lydia in his arms, but the thoughts were becoming louder and louder. Without realising it his grip on Lydia had become tighter and she noticed that. Her heart shattered at that, because she just didn't know how to help him. It was getting quite late, but nobody of them were tired or relaxed enough to sleep.

 

Without asking Lydia went back to grab her laptop and clicked on the next movie she could find and which fulfilled the criteria. Stiles saw that and his heart clenched, because he was so thankful for her. She looked at Stiles with a questioning look and he just nodded with a smile. He had no idea how he deserved someone like her.

 

They watched another movie but nobody really paid attention. The atmosphere was dense and none of them knew what to do. It was always the same when Stiles had to go back. They held onto each other and didn't know what to say. Lydia was in her favourite spot, sitting in between Stiles' legs and leaning onto his chest. He had his arms fiercly wrapped around her waist and she held onto him as well. When the movie was over Lydia put away her laptop and they brushed their teeth and laid back down. Then they were in each other's arms and tried to find some sleep.

 

Lydia was spooning Stiles from behind and stroke her fingers over his stomach. Little goosebumps were forming on his skin and she smiled softly to herself. She kissed him on the neck and shuffled even closer to him. Stiles pushed himself into her as well and it was like they were one person. He took her hand, intertwined their fingers and held them close to his heart. Lydia could still feel his racing heartbeat. Both of them were exhausted and wanted to sleep, but were too restless. After a while though Lydia felt his heatbeat slow down to a normal rhythm and she knew that he finally felt asleep. She kissed him again on his neck and closed her eyes to try to sleep as well.

 

When Lydia's alarm went off they jerked awake but were still laying closely together. Lydia went up to turn off the alarm and then immediately went back into bed and into Stiles' arms. They were both very quiet for a while, but then Stiles became restless. His heart started to race and his hands were trembling. He had the feeling like he was being suffocated and quickly sat up. With an angry grunt he wiped over his face.

 

“Hey, you are alright”, Lydia softly said and sat up as well. She knew the stage Stiles was in. And she knew that touching him now could do a lot of damage. So she just waited.

 

“No, I am not”, Stiles said quietly and put his head on his knees, “I am scared.”

 

Lydia hated that. She knew that there was nothing she could say that would make it better, but being so helpless _sucked_! 

 

“And I know it's stupid because I have been doing this shit for more than 4 years, why is it always like that?”, he said angrily and moved again to lean onto the wall. He was restless and his body was tingling. He hated that feeling of fear. He closed his eyes and tried calming down. Luckily it worked after a while. When he opened his eyes again Lydia was still sitting in the same position and she shot him a forced and sad smile.

 

“It is not stupid”, she answered softly, but still didn't engage and touched him, she kept her distance and waited for him to tell her when he would be fine with it. And Stiles loved her for that. He sighed deeply and then moved so that his head was laying on her shoulder. The instant she felt his touch she relaxed and wrapped her arms around him. She stroke his skin and held him close.

 

“I wish I could help you”, she whispered and kissed him on his buzzcut. Stiles smiled.

 

“You are, more than you know”, and he really meant it. They stayed like this for a while. Then Stiles moved out of the hug and kissed Lydia deeply.

 

“Let's go shower”, he said and Lydia nodded with a smile.

 

In the shower they both didn't let go of each other. They were always stroking each others skin or kissing each other. After a while Stiles started to relax a little bit and when Lydia moved to massage his shoulders he couldn't help but sigh. Lydia smiled softly to herself and continued massaging Stiles' shoulders until at least a bit of the tension faded away. They were still quiet when they dried themselves off and put on clothes, Lydia a simple hoodie with jeans and Stiles wore his uniform.

 

While Stiles packed his bag Lydia prepared some things for him. She always did that and it helped her feeling not so utterly useless. Stiles also loved these small packages for him, it was like he brought a piece of home with him on patrol. This time, Lydia packed some chocolates and sweets as well as warm socks. She knitted them herself and was very proud of that. As a child her grandma and her used to knit together all the time and over the years she had forgot how to do it. But since she wanted to do something for Stiles and remembered how much she loved it she had started knitting again.

 

“Thank you”, Stiles genuinely said when she gave him to small package and kissed her deeply.

 

“You're welcome”, Lydia said with a smile and went back to tidying up the kitchen. Stiles helped her and they worked in silence. Stiles had said goodbye to his dad and Scott already when he left Beacon Hills, so Lydia was gonna drive them both to the airport, since it was closer to her anyway. They sill had some time left before they needed to go, so after they finished cleaning up they both sat on the bed. Stiles was playing with Lydia's hair with one hand, his other was tightly intertwined with Lydia's hand.

 

“We need to go”, Lydia said after a while and it wasn't more than a whisper. Stiles just nodded and they both stood up to get ready.

 

In the car they still didn't say a word, a CD was softly playing in the background. Lydia had her right hand on the gearshift and Stiles' hand was on top of hers. He stroke her skin and intertwined their fingers. Sometimes he would bring it up to his lips and place a kiss on it. The whole car ride Lydia tried fighting against the tears and her throat hurt because of that. At every red light she would lean in and place a long kiss on Stiles' lips or his cheek or his shoulder.

 

They arrived at the airport and Lydia turned off the engine. It was quiet for a while and then Stiles took a deep breath and smiled at her. She timidly smiled back and they kissed again. Then they exited the car, took out Stiles' stuff and made their way in. They walked through the entrance hall, arms tightly wrapped around each other, both holding back tears. The airport wasn't that crowded, since it was just a normal Sunday and not a public holiday. Still they had to wait in line for some time. Stiles kissed her on the head and she smiled up to him. _They were gonna be fine_.

 

After Stiles checked in and they walked up to the security check. This was always the worst, since they arrived at the point where Lydia couldn't follow anymore. Suddenly she was breathless and sobs were stuck in her throat. She tried to take a breath, but it sounded very shaky. She knew what was coming, they had done this several times. But it never got easier. Stiles held onto her and never left her side. He tried to be strong, but already started to get anxious. Lydia turned around and straightened her shoulders.

 

“Okay, don't do anything stupid”, she chuckled but it sounded so wrong, “don't play the hero, don't...”, her voice left her. But Stiles understood. He nodded firmly and kissed her on her forehead.

 

“I know”, he smiled sadly, “there is no way I am gonna leave you so that you can marry some other guy”, he chuckled as well. Lydia hugged him tightly and huffed out a laugh.

 

They stayed like this for a while and tried to block out everything around them. People were looking at them, some had a sad smile on their faces. All they could see was a soldier who said goodbye to his girl. Stiles broke the hug and took Lydia's face in his hand. He pulled her close and kissed her deeply. Lydia returned the kiss with the same passion and clinged onto Stiles' shoulders. Stiles tried desperately not to cry.

 

“I will write you once I am safe”, he said quietly. Lydia could only nod. Her voice was long gone, a knot was in her throat. This was always the worst part, waiting for the first letter, praying that he was okay. They kissed again and again and never let go of each other.

 

“I have to go, but you know I will always make it back to you”, Stiles whispered. Lydia nodded against his chest. She then took a shaky breath and stepped back. She tried to smile and Stiles did the same.

 

“See you soon”, Lydia said, “I love you so much.”

 

“I love you, too”, Stiles said and couldn't help but hug her again. Then he practically tore himself away from her and quickly went up the stairs. He didn't turn around and Lydia didn't want him to. She followed him with her eyes until he was out of sight. Then she took another shaky breath and straightened her shoulders again.

 

_I got this_ , she told herself. It wasn't the first time they had to say goodbye. She repeated it in her head.  _I got this, I got this_ . But no matter how often she said it to herself, the fear of seeing Stiles for the last time made her heart race. She knew to trust her gut, but right now even her gut was twisting and turning.  _It's gonna a be fine, he is gonna be okay_ , but it was no use. The tears were already starting to form in her eyes. She quickly looked for the nearest restroom and almost ran inside. A few stalls were occupied, but luckily she found a free one and closed the door. She tried to choke down the sobs, but there was no use. She put her hands over her mouth and just let the tears fall. After a few minutes she got a hold of herself and took some deep breaths. 

 

“It's gonna be fine”, she quietly told herself and walked out of the stall. Her face was flushed and her eyes were still red, but at least she had stopped crying now. There were a few people in the restroom with her, but nobody really paid attention to her. Lydia cupped her hands and filled them with cold water. She splashed her face with it to help with the redness and the cold water definitely helped. She did this a few times. After a quick glance into the mirror she left the stall and made her way to her car. On her way across the parking lot some people were looking at her, but Lydia felt like she was in trance, so she didn't pay attention. She knew it was stupid, because it wasn't the first time Stiles and them said goodbye, but it still crushed her everytime.

 

Back in her car she sat in silence for a while and then turned on the engine. The car was slowly warming up, but she still shivered once in a while. She turned up the volume of the CD and tried distracting herself with driving. Luckily it worked after a while. Lydia pulled up to her dorm and turned off the engine. She didn't let her mind wander but exited the car quickly and walked up to her room. But as soon as she opened the door a wave of Stiles' scent hit her. For a milisecond she stopped in her tracks but got a hold of herself quickly, walked in and closed the door.

 

“It's fine”, Lydia said quietly to herself and walked across the room. But then she saw the ruffled up covers on her bed and the two tea cups on the counter. She could already feel the tears coming and closed her eyes.

 

“God”, she sighed and got angry, “can you just stop crying!”

 

She took a few more deep breaths and angrily wiped the tears from her face. She crawled into her bed and another wave of Stiles hit her. Lydia turned on her laptop and just clicked on the first Netflix movie she could find. She definitely needed a distraction, but she still made sure, that it wasn't a romantic movie or something, she was sick of crying.

 

“ _The Dark Knight_ it is”, she mumbled to herself, clicked on play and wrapped herself in her blanket. She deeply inhaled Stiles' scent and closed her eyes. Lydia wished for Stiles to be here with her, but knew that it was stupid of her to think like that. Luckily the movie was interesting and she focused on the storyline and not on anything else. After the movie she made herself a sandwich, but had to force it down, her stomach was still twisting and turning. Stiles was probably on his way to his new base or getting an overview of his next mission. She knew what being in the Army meant to him, he loved that he was part of something bigger and that his work had a purpose. But she also knew how scared he was whenever his group and him were out on parol. She shook her head and forced the thoughts away.

 

It was around 6pm when she finished eating and it was already dark outside. Her apartment was quiet and she was still wrapped in Stiles' scent. She could feel a headache starting to form and got up to make herself a cup of tea. The cups Stiles and her used this morning had already been washed and put back into the shelf. Lydia took her book and continued reading. She soon found herself being submerged back into the story and before she knew it was 9pm. She got up from her litte fort of blankets and pillows and washed the teacup. Lydia went into the bathroom to brush her teeth and change into her pyjamas. The second her thoughts were drifting to Stiles she quickly changed the thoughts to Uni or her friends. She then crawled back into bed, switched off the light and tried to find some sleep.

 

Her alarm was ringing through her ears and she quickly opened her eyes and took in a harsh breath. She kept having nightmares the whole night through and barely found any sleep, so the alarm had startled her. Lydia's heart was racing and she turned off the alarm only to fall back into bed.

 

“Oh my god”, she moaned and ran her hands over her face. The nightmares were obviously about Stiles and even now thinking about it made her sick. She was dead tired but knew that she couldn't just skip the lecture. She also knew that Uni was a great distraction from her thoughts. So she dragged herself out of her warm and comfy bed into the bathroom to take a quick shower.

 

Now it all started again from the top.

Trying to find sleep at night.

Distracting herself with Uni.

Praying for him to be safe.

And most importantly, waiting for the first letter, waiting for him to tell her that he was okay.

 


	4. Letters

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have never written a chapter just with letters before and it was so fun to figure it out!  
> I hope you will like it ♥

N° 1

September 21, 2017

Dear Lydia,

I am sorry that it took so long to write you, but you know how it goes over here. We arrived about a week ago and I don't know when this letter will reach you, but it's probably going to be another 2 weeks until you hear from me I guess. I am fine so far, I can't tell you exactly where we are, but just know that I am safe. Anyway, this here is letter number 1 :)

The camp looks the same as last time and I realised how much I missed the boys. It was great seeing them all again! Lieutenant Toby already wants the socks that you made me and Bobby and Sam just wait for the time when I am not looking to catch a bite of the sweets you packed! :D

Well this is all I can tell you so far and I am sorry it's not that much. I hope you are well and that Uni isn't stressing you out. Remember how strong you are ♥

Love,

Stiles

P.S.: Bobby and Sam say thank you for the sweets, they managed to get to them :D

 

 

 

 

 

_N° 2_

_October 28, 2017_

_Dear Stiles,_

_It is so great to hear from you! By now it has been almost 8 weeks since you left. I am so relieved to hear you are okay. And say hi to your friends from me! Next time I'll bring you guys more stuff so that you can share without stealing from each other :D_

_Uni isn't that different. We are all ready for the winter break though even though it's just October! The stores are beginning to sell Christmas stuff and the songs are being played on the radio more and more. I already bought your gift ;) I know what you are thinking and you don't need to get me anything. The greatest gift is that you are okay (and that sounded so cheesy so I am thinking about scratching that :D). No but seriously, I love you and I can't wait for you to come home again ♥_

_Lots of love,_

_Lydia_

 

 

 

 

 

N° 3

November 15, 2017

Dear Lydia,

Reading your letter made me feel much better, so thank you for that :) We are now behind enemy lines, so this letter might come late. I also don't know how much time I'll have to sit down and write so I'll probably write this letter step by step, sorry about that.

November 16

So today we got our mission and it's gonna include a lot of walking, so at least I'll stay in shape! Coming back, maybe the whole walking thing wasn't that good, because right now I can feel every muscle in my body.

I am sorry but I seriously don't know what to write since I am not allowed to talk about all this stuff...

November 17

The sun is out and makes everything golden, it reminds me of that autumn day when I was with you ♥

Sorry this letter is so short. I love you

Stiles

 

 

 

 

 

_N° 4_

_December 1, 2017_

_Dear Stiles,_

_I am happy that reading my letter helps you, I often feel so useless, so now I am trying to put even more stories of my boring life into these letters. It's totally okay if your letter is short, I don't care if it's just two sentences or two pages ♥_

_I hate reading that you are not well though... I know that you can't do anything about it and I hate that, too. I know that it's not in our hands, but everyday I fear that you might not make it back and that the letter comes where they'll tell me the bad news. I also know that telling you this might do you harm as well because you are gonna worry about me, because that's just who you are ♥ but I worry about you. Not gonna lie, falling asleep sometimes isn't easy, but I still have your old shirts and look through the pictures on my phone and that sometimes helps._

_Anyway, I don't want this letter to be too depressing so I'll tell you some boring stories from Uni :) Remember when I told you about my professor from Biochemical Research? Today he told us a story about one of his previous patients and about this really horrible condition where basically your skin starts fouling and now we will all have nightmares from that :D you're welcome for that image in your head now by the way! Soooo... I'll leave you with that._

_Lots of love,_

_Lydia ♥_

 

 

 

 

 

N° 5

December 20, 2017

My dearest Lydia, (was this too much?? Idk I am feeling good today ♥)

Don't apologize for these thoughts, I have them as well. I am so sorry that I worry you guys so much. I know that it isn't easy for you guys as well, but I am so so grateful that you support me nonetheless. Obviously there are good and bad days here, some are even really good (like today) or really bad.

Thank you for that image of fouling skin by the way... It sends shivers down my spine when I think about that. What do they teach you at Uni?? :D

Here it's nearly Christmas and I can't stop thinking about all of you back home. I wish I could buy you some gifts, but there is nothing here... I also know that you guys don't expect anything, but I always loved buying gifts. Being in a foreign country over Christmas is hard. I don't know I guess sometimes I just feel alone? Or lost or whatever. Which is weird because I have all these dudes with me 24/7, but it's not the same. I miss you. I miss talking to you. I miss seeing you. I miss hearing your voice. I miss kissing you. God, I hope nobody reads that, otherwise my reputation will be gone! But I am so happy to have you in my life ♥

Okay now I really need to get back to being a man! :D

I love you so much ♥

Merry Christmas,

Stiles

 

 

 

 

 

_N° 6_

_January 5, 2018_

_Dear Stiles,_

_Damn you for making me cry in public! It finally stopped raining here for a day and the sun is out so I thought I would go to our favourite café and read your letter there. Turns out it was a bad decision since now I am crying and everybody is looking at me, soooo.... all thanks to you!_

_But also thank you for that letter ♥ You are the most important person in my life (of course besides my Mum) and I am so so lucky to have you in my life ♥_

_Your letter arrrived a week after Christmas, so Happy New Year! Has it been 7 years with you already? Wow, how did I survive that? :D No, but seriously, I love you so much and I wish you were here right now. Attached to this letter is your Christmas gift. It is very small and I hope it got through and you are holding it right now :)_

_Love,_

_Lydia_

_P.S. Oh by the way, I don't know if you have heard but Scott has good chances of getting the veterinary clinic from Deaton!_

 

 

 

 

 

N° 7

February 2, 2018

Dear Lydia,

We have been moved to a different location again, that's why this letter might take even longer to arrive. You know I can't tell you where, but this place makes me wish that I was at the old place again. Getting anything here is difficult and we often just sit around and wait for orders. I am happy that I brought the book along, it is quite good so far. I'll give it to you next time, so you can read it as well :) I think you might like it.

Anyway, the rain is now currently pouring down my neck and we are all sogging wet. The sky hasn't cleared up in three days and everything is muddy. Days like these are hard, but not avoidable. On days like these the whole camp is quiet, it's like the world has turned against us or something. Having you guys on my mind helps though. I often go back and think about my Dad or Scott and I feel better. They often send photos and I keep them close to me at all times to look at them.

It is like you knew what I needed, so thank you so much for that present! I wear it around my neck everytime and see all your faces whenever I want to. Now YOU nearly made me cry this time so we are even now ♥

I know that you went over to my Dad on Christmas and I can't thank you enough! He told me that you guys all came together at his house and cooked some delicious food. He practically wrote an entire page about that turkey :D He seemed happy, so thank you for that ♥ My dad often writes me and says that he is okay, but I know that he is good at faking it. How is he doing? Scott said that he seems fine, but I just want to be sure that he is okay.

Scott told me that he might get the clinic and we are both freaking out! He always wanted to be proud of something and to be independent. Also this is basically how everything has started. That's where him and Allison REALLY talked for the first time, I remember he couldn't shut up about that for weeks!

Also, Happy New Year to you, too

I miss you so much it hurts,

Stiles

P.S.: I know that you told me not to get you anything for Christmas, but I got back into drawing again and you were the only thing on my mind. I hope you like it :)

 

 

 

 

 

_N° 8_

_March 18, 2018_

_Dear Stiles,_

_I am so happy that you like your gift :) I was thinking of giving you something from us, but it needed to be small so that it wouldn't bother you when you have it with you and that it would be easy to carry around and so I settled for that amulet._

_And thank you so so much for that drawing! I love it ♥ I framed it and it is now sitting on my desk. And everytime I look at it I think about how much you mean to me._

_I am sorry, that you guys have shitty days sometimes, I wish I could help somehow... Are you guys safe though?_

_The Christmas dinner was perfect. The Turkey actually was delicious so I can understand that your dad wrote an essay about it :D I don't know what the others have told you already, but we just sat in the living room and played games. Melissa's gift for your dad was adorable. She had printed out old photos from where Scott and you were little and put them together in a little collage. We then just talked about all the stupid things you did as kids and some stories left us crying out of laughter! You never told me that you once stuck a marble up your nose :D hearing how Scott had freaked out back then and how you guys had been hysterically crying because you had been afraid to die was hilarious!_

_I also talked to your dad and he seemed okay, so you have nothing to worry about :) of course he misses you a lot and Melissa told me that sometimes he sits at home crying, but this stuff just happens on the really bad days. Normally he is the same old guy and can't stop talking about you :) he is very proud of you, you know? During our dinner he kept telling old stories and had this proud smile on his face. He really loves you._

_Other than that I spent the Christmas “holidays” studying, which is always fun... But this is my last semester! Next semester I am already writing my bachelor thesis, and I can't wait to be done! It will be sad to leave it all behind, my friends and this town, but it is going to feel great to have achieved something._

_I miss you like crazy and wish that you could be here right now ♥_

_I hope you are okay,_

_Lydia_

 

 

 

 

 

N° 9

April 12, 2018

Dear Lydia,

It has been 2 months since I wrote you and I am sorry about that. We had moved further into enemy territory and something had happened when we were out on patrol and we are in a hospital now. Don't worry, I am fine, nothing but a few bruises. But Sam and Brian are gone. And it feels empty without them. I have never really talked to Brian, but it still hurt to lose two brothers in the same night.

This letter is so short, but I seriously don't know what else to tell you. I just wanted you to know that I am fine.

I love you so much,

Stiles

 

 

 

 

 

_N° 10_

_May 10, 2018_

_Dear Stiles,_

_I was so worried when I didn't hear from you in a while. I am so sorry to hear about your loss. I know it is a stupid question, but are you okay? Is there anything I can do for you? I feel horrible... I don't know what to say. I have never met Sam, but you always told me about him and he seemed like an awesome guy._

_You are so far away and I wish I could be with you right now._

_I don't know what else to say... I have been sitting in front of this letter for two days now, but nothing comes to my mind._

_I love you, never forget that._

_Lydia_

 

 

 

 

 

N° 11

June 1, 2018

Dear Lydia,

Thank you for saying that. We are just trying to move on somehow, but it is so hard. Sam was a crucial part of the crew and also of me. To be honest the last weeks hadn't been fun. But sadly that's what War does. We got out of the hospital and are now back in our camp. The atmosphere is tense.

How are you? Just please tell me anything. I need to think about something else. How is Uni? What is your thesis going to be about?

I love you so much,

Stiles

 

 

 

 

 

_N° 12_

_June 30, 2018_

_Dear Stiles,_

_I hope you are all okay. Next week are my last exams and I can't wait for that. I just have three left, Rehabilitation, Neurosurgery and Clinical Pharmacology. Rehabilitation should be easy, because we already collected some points for the exams, but Neurosurgery is probably going to kick my ass._

_My bachelor thesis is about Stem cells, I will start writing it after the summer. I want to figure out how they work and how we can use them for us. I can work with Dr. Stevens at the local hospital and I am very excited about that._

_I also found an internship for the summer and after I will finish that I will go on vacation. Oh and I saw “Incredibles 2” in the cinema and I think that you might like it :)_

_Other than that I often go for walks, the woods look so beautiful right now. Sometimes I just sit on the grass and think back to that autumn day. I am thinking about you all the time ♥_

_I am sorry that I can't tell you more, but that's all that happened lately._

_I miss you,_

_Lydia ♥_

 

 

 

 

 

N° 13

August 15, 2018

Dear Lydia,

Thank you so much for that letter. It really helped :) We all still miss them deeply, but with time it doesn't feel like somebody is ripping out hearts out whenever we think about them. The pain is still there, I don't think it will ever fade, but we don't feel it every minute.

I am so happy for your internship! I am proud of you ♥ The topic of your bachelor thesis sounds very interesting. I remember reading about stem cells and that basically you can regrow organs or something with it? I might remember it wrong though :D

How was your vacation? Where did you go? Did you go alone? I remember seeing The Incredibles back when I was a kid and completely loved it! I definitely have to watch it when I get back. God I can't wait to come back to all of you.

With all the love I have,

Stiles ♥

 

 

 

 

 

_N° 14_

_August 30, 2018_

_Dear Stiles,_

_I went to Utah for the summer, the nature there is breathtaking! We have to go there at some point. I went with a friend from Uni, Sarah, and together we did some hikes or just went shopping. It was a girls trip :D_

_Other than that my life is pretty stressful so far. Uni is stressing me out more than ever, it's like they want to bury us with work in our last weeks of Uni... Applying for my Master also sucks, because I first need to figure out what I want, probably move to a different city and finish my Bachelor studies at the same time. Who thought this was a good idea?? I haven't decided what I want to do yet... I applied for Molecular Medicine and for Neuroscience, but who knows when or if they get back to me. But maybe I'll get a job offer from local hospital after I finished doing my thesis there. I just don't know..._

_I am sorry that this letter is so negative, but these past days hadn't been great. I've been home for the weekend and saw my Mum and Scott and Melissa and it was so cool talking to them again. It still feels like home whenever I am with them :) But my Mum is getting older and it gets harder and harder seeing her like that. I also keep having nightmares about everything and I know that you will blame yourself again, but please don't ♥ They are not just about you, but also about Uni or the future in general. I just don't know what to do._

_I am sorry that I am ranting, but it feels like nothing is right at the moment. I miss you so much._

_Love,_

_Lydia ♥_

 

 

 

 

 

N° 15

September 29, 2018

Dear Lydia,

I am sorry that you feel that way. I hope that by the time this letter reaches you you will feel better ♥ If not, then maybe this will cheer you up:

I AM COMING HOME!

I still can't believe it, but Lieutenant Toby just told us the news!! I'll be home by the end of January, our flight arrives at January 18 at the airport you always pick me up. It's been over a year (13 months to be exact) and I can't wait to see you again! I already have told my Dad and Scott the news as well. It's going to be awesome holding you all in my arms again! ♥

Concerning your fears about the Master, I am sure that you will figure it out. Both sound very interesting and go into the direction you always wanted, right? You can always switch to a different study course if you don't like it :) You are still young and nothing is stopping you!

And about the nightmares... I wish I could be there with you to help you through them. I know how much they suck. The things that work for me are distracting myself with something else. Anything else. It can be the plot of your favourite book or a song you really love. I always think about you for example :) the nightmares won't go away, because they are out of your control, but it helps with the terror you feel afterwards. I hope...♥

I will think about you tonight ♥

With lots of love,

Stiles

 

 

 

 

 

_N° 16_

_November 1, 2018_

_Dear Stiles,_

_I CAN'T BELIEVE IT! When I read it I started screaming and crying at the same time! :D I don't even know what to say, I am so unbelievably happy, I could hug the whole world! I will prepare the best welcome party for you. I need to take advantage of it since this time you actually told me when you would arrive ;)_

_It's been so long since I have seen you or held you close and I can't wait to have you back!_

_Right now I am knee-deep in work for my bachelor thesis, but it is fun so far. Dr. Stevens has even agreed to write me a letter or recommendation for my applications. Things are looking up :) The nightmares have gotten less as well. Thank God. Your way of distracting helped, thank you for that ♥ And when you are here it's going to be even better! I still can't believe it! I don't think I will be able to stop smiling for the next week :D_

_See you soon (omg!)_

_Lydia_

 

 

 

 

 

N° 17

December 15, 2018

Dear Lydia,

Finding sleep these days is hard, because I am just so excited to see you again! I physically have to force myself from jumping around in joy! The others are the same. The whole camp is buzzing and we have missed that feeling.

I had a weird dream today: I went out for a walk and then met Superman, but then the sky was rainbow colours and we ate ice cream with Bobby and Lieutenant Toby. I just... why? :D Don't judge me, okay? I have no idea where this was coming from! I don't know why I have told you that right now, but I felt like it :D

It sucks that I can't be there for Christmas or New Years again... I hope you still have an amazing night with lots of good food and laughs.

Lots of love and see you soon (!!!),

Stiles ♥

 

 

 

 

 

_N° 18_

_December 23, 2019_

_Dear Stiles,_

_This will probably be the last letter I'll write to you, because you'll be here soon! Christmas is just around the corner and it is still weird, that you are not here to celebrate it with us. But the thought of seeing you soon changes EVERYTHING! I still can't stop smiling when I think about it :) You will get your Christmas gift in person, I will keep it safe for you until you are here._

_My bachelor thesis is going well so far, I will tell you everything in person but it looks like I might have a chance to start working at the hospital afterwards! Dr. Stevens said that I could either always come back for the semester breaks or just start working there after I get my diploma next year. It is just so crazy to think about that! I will have a job soon and get my own paycheck and then we can start building a family ♥ I can't wait to see what 2020 brings!_

_But I am already thinking ahead :D First you come home and then we will figure out the rest together ♥ Like we always do._

_See you at the airport!_

_I love you,_

_Lydia ♥_


	5. Back home

The next few days went by as a blurr for Stiles. The whole camp buzzed of excitement, because they would all return to their loved ones soon. Stiles had been dreaming of their faces for the last three nights now. He just couldn't wait to see them again! Every night the boys sat together to talk about what they would do when they would return home. It was a nice change to the usual nights where they would often sit in silence, lost in thought, mostly trying to hide their fear.

 

Right now they were on one of their last patrols, it was just a routine round today. To see if anything changed at the enemy lines. These walks were Stiles' favourites. They would walk through fields and woods and meadows without seeing anybody for miles. Even though it was still war it was kind of...calming in a way to see nature reclaiming its territory again.

 

“Hey Stilinski! Watch where you're going, princess!”, Bobby said and threw a rock at Stiles' helmet.

 

Stiles was torn from his thoughts and looked at him.

 

“You, too, asshole!”, Stiles returned and laughed at him. He was just bending down to pick up some dirt to throw at Bobby's face when a loud explosion disturbed the silence. Immediately Stiles was knocked off his feet and he flew through the air. His eyes closed instinctively, so he couldn't see what was happening. And before he knew it his left side collided hard with a tree. The air was knocked out of his lungs and he bounced off the tree just to fall harshly to the ground. On the way down he hit his head and everything went black. His ears rang for a while but then there was only darkness.

 

Stiles felt like he was drifting in an ocean of pure darkness and felt weightless. Now and then he was about to regain consciousness but then hot pain shot through his body and dragged him under again. He was floating and then falling and then floating again. Images flew through his mind, Lieutenant Toby looking down at him with a horrified expression, then the sky, then strangers working hastily in his field of vision. But mostly it was just nothingness.

 

Stiles felt like he was just a shell of himself, floating through the black ocean.

 

It had been a while since Lydia last heard from Stiles. But she tried to not think about that too much. Her letter had probably arrived just before Stiles and the crew were about to leave their base anyway. So no point in freaking out about that. Right? Besides, sometimes letters got lost in the mail and it had happened a few times to them as well. So why was her gut twisting and turning whenever she thought about him? Did something happen? But then they would have told her, right? Right?? Her thoughts were going crazy. Lydia couldn't bare to think about Stiles in a ditch somewhere and tried her best to push the sickening feeling aside. She blamed the shiver that ran down her spine on the excitement of seeing him again and didn't let her mind wander to any other possiblity. Still, in the back of her mind there was always that nagging feeling that something bad was about to happen.

 

She was just writing an essay when her phone rang. She saw the sheriff on her caller ID and picked up.

 

“Hey Noah, what's up?”, she asked while still being focused on the article she was currently reading.

 

There was heavy breathing on the other end of the line. Lydia was confused and closed her laptop. She was about to ask again when he spoke.

 

“Lydia?”, his voice sounded broken, “something happened.”

 

Lydia's stomach sank to the floor. _Of course_. She could already feel a panik attack coming. It was like deep down she had known that something had happened. Lydia knew better than not to trust her gut! Suddenly she was so angry at herself. She was too scared to ask further and just waited for Noah to talk again.

 

“It's Stiles”, he then said and Lydia forgot to breathe, “he is at the hospital, he got into an accident.”

 

She threw her hand over her mouth.

 

“No”, she whispered.

 

“We are at Beacon Hills hospital, can you come over?”, Noah's voice quivered.

 

“Yes, yes, of course”, she immediately said and cleared her throat, “how is he...is he...please...is he okay?”

 

“I don't really know... I just arrived here...”, Lydia could feel that Noah was anxious as well.

 

“Do you know what happened?”, she asked breathlessly.

 

“No, not yet, he is still in surgery, but we will talk to the doctor soon.”

 

Lydia stopped in her movements. _Surgery_? _How bad was it?_

 

“I am on my way right now, I'll be there in a few hours”, she quickly said.

 

“Thank you”, Noah said and took a deep breath, “drive carefully. I don't want you to end up here, too.”

 

Lydia picked up on his attempt to make a joke and chuckled. It sounded fake.

 

“I will. Bye.”

 

Lydia tried to steady her breathing. That wasn't easy however since all she could think about was Stiles laying in a hospital bed. Again. They had went through a similar situation a few years ago. It had been the second time that Stiles had left for the army when he had sprained an ankle. Lydia had received a call from the hospital just to see Stiles eating pudding with a small cast on his foot. She remembered the terror she had felt back then when she had known that it had just been a stupid ankle. Now she didn't know anything. She then began to walk around the room to pack her bag.

 

 _He is in surgery, so what if it's bad? What if it's really bad?_ Her head started to pound and she noticed that she had started to shake. Lydia took a few seconds to try to control the shaking of her hands and the annoying tingle that went through her whole body. _Please please please._ It was like a mantra inside her head. _He is okay, he just has to be. Just breathe Lydia_. She could feel herself falling deeper into panik.

 

“Breathe, Lydia”, she muttered under her breath, “breathe.”

 

Her freaking out right now wouldn't help anyone. She focused on her racing heartbeat and forced it to slow down. After a minute or two it finally worked and the uncontrollable shaking in her body reduced to a minimum. She quickly finished packing her bag and made sure to take enough clothes with her. She wasn't planning on leaving Stiles. Lydia slammed the door to her apartment shut and sprinted down the stairs. In a matter of minutes she was in the car and raced down the streets.

 

The drive to Beacon Hills was horrible. She kept shouting at people, because they were  _too slow_ and drove way over the speed limit. She was lucky to be friends with Noah, he would get her out of any tickets. But that was the least of her worries right now. Her mind was still on overdrive. Just another hour until she would arrive. She kept blinking away her tears but more and more were coming. Lydia tried to stay calm but with every minute she feared that she might come too late.  _What if there had been complications? What if Stiles was getting worse?_ Her mind was spinning with all these unanswered questions. She increased the volume of the radio and tried focusing back on the road. The rest of the drive went by as a blurr.

 

Lydia arrived at the carpark and quickly exited her car. Unshed tears were still in her eyes, but at least no new ones were coming. She sprinted over the concrete and then burst through the doors, flashbacks of the times when they had been fighting the supernatural on her mind. She frantically looked through the hallways, trying to find familiar faces. She then found Scott standig next to the coffee machine.

 

“Scott!”, she shouted and sprinted towards him. His head shot up and when he saw her he opened his arms. Lydia crashed into his arms and tightly held onto him.

 

“What happened? Please tell me he is okay!”, she said and broke the hug to look at him.

 

“He is okay for now”, he said shakily and she saw that he had been crying as well, “come, I'll bring you to him.”

 

Lydia nodded and together they went to Stiles' room.

 

“Apparently there had been a landmine going off on their last patrol”, he started, “that was all they could tell us. They brought him here as soon as possible and rushed him into surgery. He has been in and out of consciousness ever since. My mum had been taking care of him for a while and she said that he kept mumbling weird things now and then. But the doctor said he is probably going to be okay.”

 

“Okay”, Lydia nodded and tried to calm her racing heart down, “that's good.”

 

They walked a few steps in silence. Lydia was still buzzing with energy and her whole body was tingling. Then she saw the sheriff sitting in a chair in front of a room. He was hunched and looked so old. When he heard steps approaching he looked up and his face was red and puffy. He got up and walked towards Lydia to give her a big hug as well.

 

“How are you, are you okay?”, she asked him. He nodded into her shoulder.

 

“Yeah”, he said and Lydia gave him a last squeeze before breaking the hug.

 

“The doctor said that he had hit his head...he is probably having a severe concussion or something...he needs a lot of rest right now”, he said and his voice trailed off. He was clearly still in shock.

 

Lydia exhaled shakily. These news were not the best but still better than anything she had thought of when driving here. The terror was finally slowly leaving her bones.

 

“He..uhm...he also had a couple of small seizures since he arrived here, but that is supposed to be common after what had happened to him, soo...”, Noah continued but by the end of that sentence he was barely whispering.

 

“He is going to be fine, he is strong”, Lydia said and forced a smile on her face.

 

“Yeah”, Noah said and returned it, “when he first woke up he didn't know where he was and we all feared for the worst, you know, because of the whole possibility of memory loss thing. But then it was like his mind had cleared and he was so happy to see us.”

 

Noah smiled at the memory of that. Scott did too and laid a hand on Noah's shoulder. Noah smiled at him and laid his own hand over Scott's to squeeze it. They were all silent for a while. Lydia was getting more nervous with any second, because she felt like she couldn't breathe until she would see him. But she didn't want to intrude.

 

“You can go see him if you want”, the sheriff finally said and she sighed.

 

“Thank you”, she quietly said and reached for the door handle. Her hand was shaking and she almost pulled back because she was too afraid to see what was inside. But her heart had already decided for her and before she knew what she was doing the door was open.

 

Lydia walked into the white, sterile room. They were flowers on the table and used coffee cups from the machine. A book was there as well, pages marked to remember where the reader had left off. A soft  _beep_ was disturbing the silence. Lydia followed that sound and found Stiles laying in the hospital bed. 

 

He was pale and bruises were all over his face. Lydia could see his split lip and the angry red bruises on his left cheek. He had a nasal cannula and his head was tightly wrapped in gauze. They had also connected him to an IV bag and a heart monitor which was producing the only sound in this room. Lydia rushed to his side and immediately took his hand. They had bandaged up most of the bruises, but the skin around them was still yellow and purple and green and blue. He looked thin and awfully weak laying there with just his chest slowly rising and falling. His face looked hollow and he didn't look his age, he looked way older. Now and again Lydia hated the fact that Stiles had joined the Army years ago and this moment right here was one of the reasons why. She felt new tears in her eyes and wiped them away. Lydia shakily exhaled and subconsciously squeezed Stiles' hand, she needed to feel him. Needed him to reassure her that he was right here with her. When she looked up she saw Stiles' eyelids flutter.

 

“Stiles?”, her voice broke off and she cleared her throat before she spoke again, “Stiles, can you hear me?”

 

He took a few breaths and forced his eyes to open. He looked around the room with his eyes unfocused until he found her. Lydia was crying and basically crushing his hand in hers.

 

“Hi”, she whispered and smiled.

 

Stiles was looking at her with a confused expression. He opened his mouth but couldn't seem to find words. But then the expression vanished and a wide but tired smile started to grow on his face.

 

“I know your face”, he said softly and weakly squeezed her hand. Lydia sobbed and leaned down to kiss him. Stiles timidly returned the kiss.

 

“I told you I was going to make it back to you”, he whispered with his eyes still closed. Lydia slowly pulled back and smiled.

 

“Yeah”, Lydia cried, “yeah you did.”

 

“So you can stop worrying about me, I am fine”, he quietly said and looked at her again. She could clearly see how exhasuted he was but there was also a light and fire in his eyes that made her so proud.

 

“Not gonna happen”, she returned and kissed him again. Stiles hummed happily and closed his eyes again.

 

“I'll let you get some more rest, okay?”, she whispered. She didn't want him to exhaust himself.

 

“Or you could just stay here”, he said with a smile, but his eyes dropped close almost every second.

 

“How about that: I'll grab a coffee, go talk to your dad and then come right back”, she smiled and wiped away her tears. They had finally stopped falling. Stiles just hummed again and settled deeper into his pillows. He was asleep in no time and his grip on Lydia's hand loosened.

 

Lydia took a few seconds to steady herself. She was still shaky from all that excitement, but at least she could breathe normally again. She looked at Stiles who was sleeping peacefully. Lydia smiled softly to herself and got up to kiss him on the forehead. She mostly kissed the gauze on his head, but maybe it would help him heal faster. Lydia chuckled to herself and shook her head. _Sure Lydia, because that's how the human body works_. With a last squeeze of Stiles' hand she got up and left the room.

 

Scott and Noah were still standing outside when she joined them again. They had talked about something but stopped when they saw her.

 

“How is he?”, Noah asked.

 

“He woke up for a few minutes, but now he is asleep again”, Lydia smiled.

 

“That's good”, Noah returned the smile.

 

“I am just gonna grab a coffee, do you guys want anything?”

 

“No thank you, we are waiting for the doctor, he wanted to give us an update”, Noah said and Lydia nodded. She had her bag still in her car but didn't want to be rude so she waited for any news. She had planned on staying here for as long as they would allow it. While she was walking towards the coffee machine she wrote an email to her professors, explaining the situation. She had her last exams coming up, but Stiles was way more important right now. She could always retake the exams in the summer.

 

When she returned with her coffee she saw the sheriff talking to the doctor. She stopped next to Scott who was standing a few feet away, giving the sheriff some space. Of course he was eavesdropping, he just couldn't help it.

 

“What are the news?”, Lydia said quietly and took a sip from her coffee.

 

The focused expression was wiped from Scott's face and he looked at her. It was like he had just realized that she was there.

 

“Uhm, the doctor said that everything looks promising so far. Stiles had some internal bleeding they had to deal with but it seems to have healed great”, Scott took a deep breath, the terror was still in his bones, “and the...uhm...the cracked ribs need some time to heal but with enough rest everything should be fine. And he definitely has a severe concussion, but that should also heal nicely.”

 

Lydia nodded.

 

“That's a relief”, she said quietly and Scott nodded in agreement. Lydia saw that he was concentrating on hearing again and took a few sips from her cup in silence. She looked around and saw the usual buzz of a hospital. People being wheeled around in wheelchairs and stretchers and doctors and nurses walking from room to room. She again remembered all these times when she had been sitting in one of these uncomfortable chairs, drinking bad coffee and waiting for news of the wellbeings of her loved ones. She was still lost in thought when Scott touched her shoulder. She quickly focused back on the here and now and looked at him expectantly.

 

“The doctor just said that he can go home in the next days”, Scott said happily and they both smiled at each other. Lydia sighed and relief was on both their faces. Noah had the same expression when he walked back to them. He sighed deeply.

 

“So I believe, that you guys have heard everything?”, he said with a smirk to Scott.

 

“Sorry”, Scott said with a small smile.

 

“No, it's fine, I would have told you anyway, you know you guys are family.”

 

“Same goes to you, sheriff”, Scott said and pulled Noah into a hug.

 

“Yeah, we've been through so much, we can deal with this, too”, Lydia said and joined them.

 

They stayed like this for a while, giving each other strength and comfort.

 

“I am going back inside”, Noah said after breaking the hug. He wiped some tears away that had escaped his eye. This time they were happy tears though. He was so relieved to hear the good news about Stiles' recovery. The other two nodded.

 

“We'll be here if you need us”, Lydia said with a smile and Noah returned the smile.

 

He got back into the room and saw his son sleeping peacefully. His heartrate was calm and the worrying lines on his face were gone. He still didn't look like the Stiles he remembered from before the war, but Noah knew that it would take some time for Stiles to adapt again. He was just getting comfortable in the chair when he heard a soft knock on the door. When he looked up he saw Melissa walking through the door. Noah got up and walked towards her.

 

“Hey, just wanted to check in with you”, she whispered and hugged him, “I heard the good news.”

 

“Yeah, I think we are going to be okay”, Noah said after breaking the hug. They both looked at Stiles who was still sleeping. They could hear his deep breaths and Noah would give everything to hear this sound more often. Whenever Stiles stayed over at his dad's house he often had nightmares and sometimes woke up with a scream or a loud gasp. It terrified Noah to see him like that.

 

“Do you need anything?”, Melissa asked quietly.

 

“No, I think I am just going to sit with him for a while”, Noah said and looked back at his son with a smile.

 

“Okay”, Melissa said and put a hand on his shoulder, “just let them call me if you need anything, okay? My shift is over now.”

 

“Yeah, of course, get some rest, it was a tough couple of hours for all of us”, he sighed. With a last smile Melissa walked through the door again and Noah went back to his place next to Stiles. He took his hand and stroke his thumb over Stiles' skin. Suddenly he was so tired. These last hours had been nothing but torture for him. When they had called him to tell him that his son had been admitted to the hospital he had felt like his heart was about to stop. Noah had always feared that it would come to this, Stiles was a soldier now and that meant that he would be exposed to high danger. Noah sighed deeply and leaned back in his chair.

 

“Oh god”, he muttered under his breath and then smiled. Stiles was safe for now and that was all that mattered. No point in thinking about “ _what if”._ He had always wanted to protect him from everything that was bad in the world, but Stiles had made it pretty clear, that he was able to take care of himself. His best friend was a werewolf, his girlfriend a banshee and Noah was pretty sure that they were still things that Stiles had never told him.

 

He thought back to the time Stiles had been a little boy. Back to the time Claudia had still been alive. They had always had their hands full with Stiles. He had always wanted to explore everything and walk up to random strangers to ask them something. This had often led to funny encounters and Noah found himself smiling at the memory of that. It didn't take long and with the image of little Stiles he fell asleep.

 

Noah woke up when he felt someone squeezing his hand. He sighed deeply and ran his hand over his face to hide a yawn. Then he rubbed his eyes and looked at what had caused him to wake up. Stiles was looking at him with a soft smile on his face.

 

“Hello there”, Stiles said and squeezed Noah's hand again. Noah tried to hide another yawn.

 

“Hey, how are you feeling?”, he asked.

 

“Well, my head is killing me and my ears can't seem to stop ringing but other than that...”, Stiles trailed off, “the doctor had just been here to check up on me but you were so deeply asleep that you didn't wake up from that.”

 

“Oh god”, Noah hid his face in his hand in embarrassment, “did he say anything though?”

 

“Not much, everything is looking good so far, but they want to keep me here for a bit to see if anything changes. He said that it shouldn't be more than a couple of days though”, Stiles smiled tiredly at him. His head was still wrapped in gauze and the split in his lip had started to bleed again. He looked really banged up. His left cheek, where he had hit the ground apparently, was green and yellow and the skin had split open so an angry shade of red was added to the mix.

 

“You look horrible”, Noah muttered under his breath before he could stop himself.

 

“Gee, thanks dad”, Stiles said and rolled his eyes. He started to laugh but then suddenly stopped and scrunched up his face. His left hand shot to his ribs and he clawed at his chest. The grip on his father's hand tightened and his knuckles almost turned white.

 

“Fuck”, he groaned and tensed up.

 

“Oh god, I am so sorry!”, Noah said quickly and tried to find a way to help his son. He laid his other hand over their joined hands and squeezed them tightly.

 

“Do you need anything...uhm...I can call Melissa or...”, he started to babble.

 

“No”, Stiles said between pressed lips and had his eyes still closed tightly. His forehead was in wrinkles and he was gripping his chest fiercly. Noah heard him trying to take deep breaths and after four our five of them Stiles finally started to relax again.

 

“Okay”, he said strained, “note to self, please don't laugh.”

 

“Yeah, the doctor said that your ribs might take a while to heal”, Noah said quietly. The fierce grip Stiles had had on his hand finally loosened and Stiles sank back into the sheets.

 

“Not getting used to that”, he sighed and forced a smile on his face. His forehead was still scrunched up, but at least it seemed like he wasn't in a huge amount of pain anymore. The rapid beeping of the hearmonitor was still disturbing the silence. Stiles looked over to his dad who was on the verge of tears again. It seemed like he wasn't here with him. Stiles squeezed the hand he was still holding.

 

“Dad?”, he asked. That seemed to get Noah out of his trance and he looked at Stiles.

 

“Don't give me that look”, Stiles said quietly.

 

“I've been worse”, he tried to joke, but it fell flat.

 

“I still hate it”, Noah said fiercly, “do you really need to go back...I mean...”

 

Stiles sighed. They had had that conversation several times now. And Stiles understood where his dad was coming from, he really did. But by now being in the Army was Stiles' duty and he couldn't just quit. He had signed a contract and had to serve his time. He was serving a purpose plus earning his money for college and that were two things Stiles was proud of.

 

“Forget it”, Noah added. He knew how Stiles thought about quitting the Army. He also knew that Stiles just couldn't quit and that it was his duty but seeing his son going into war wasn't something that was easy.

 

Stiles tried sitting up, but was being forced back into the pillows by an immense pain in his ribs again. He clenched his teeth and hissed. His dad was with him in an instance.

 

“Let's not fight, okay?”, Stiles said tiredly. It pissed him off that he couldn't do anything without being in pain. Every movement he made was making him so weak. He looked at his dad. Noah tried to smile and nodded.

 

“Okay”, Noah said. It was quiet for a while except for the slightly faster beeping of the heart monitor.

 

“I am sorry”, Noah said again, “it's just that...seeing you like this...it just reminds me of when you were still in high school. After you had told me about the supernatural I had spent every minute fearing for your safety and when you finally got out...it's like....I don't know.”

 

Noah unconsciously stroke over Stiles' hand with his thumb while he was talking.

 

“I know dad”, Stiles said quietly and Noah looked back at him, “but this right here is not going to happen very often, okay? I promised you that in the beginning, remember?”

 

Stiles was now intensely looking at his dad.

 

“I promised you that I will be careful and I was. And even this here is just because of an accident. Nobody could have known that this landmine was going off by itself on accident”, he continued.

 

Noah nodded and forced a smile on his face.

 

“And hey, I survived werewolf attacks and a freaking possession, I think I can handle broken ribs and a concussion”, Stiles tried to joke again and this time Noah couldn't help but chuckle.

 

“Yeah”, Noah said with a smile, “I still remember that one time you were coming home with about a thousand leaves stuck in your hair and just one shoe. I didn't even want to ask back then.”

 

Stiles chuckled quietly and bit down the small wave of pain that hit him.

 

“See, I can handle myself”, Stiles said and the sheriff nodded.

 

“I know, but I am your dad, so worrying is kinda my thing, you know?”

 

“I know dad”, Stiles said softly. He opened his arms and Noah looked at him questioningly before getting up and awkwardly returning the hug. Tubes were in the way and it was more like a pat on the shoulders, but it still felt good for both of them. Stiles' heartrate spiked up again, but when Noah looked at him he was smiling.

 

“Now enough with this gloomy talking”, Stiles said and Noah laughed.

 

“Do you maybe think you can get me a hot chocolate from the machine?”

 

“Sure”, Noah smiled and with a last squeeze of Stiles' hand he left the room.

 

When his dad was out of the door Stiles sank back into his pillows. He was exhausted. Even just this small talk had drained his battery and he wanted nothing more than to sleep. His head was pounding and waves of nausea were hitting him constantly. There was also this constant dull in his body. He wasn't necessarily in pain it was just a general unease he was feeling. Like his body wasn't quite there yet. His mind was still trying to process everything that had happened but with the concussion it was hard. He often had a headache whenever he tried too hard to focus, but the nurses had said that it was nothing unusual after the stuff he had just went through. But what exactly did he just go through? Stiles couldn't remember all of it and that was frustrating and scary at the same time. He had had concussions before, but not to this extent.

 

Stiles also hated the pain and terror he had just made his friends go through. And he hated himself for it. Seeing their sad faces and tears almost hurt more than his injuries. He had never wanted this to happen. Sure, he had known that going to the Army wasn't like going to Disneyworld, but he had never wanted it to go this far. Suddenly he was so angry! He wanted to get out and just run away. But he couldn't even lift his left arm without being in pain and that annoyed him. An angry grunt left his mouth. He wanted to get out of here, he _needed_ to get ouf of here right now! The angry beeping of his heartmonitor brought him back to the present and he took a few breaths to calm himself. Stiles didn't want them all to be even more worried about him.

He still couldn't believe that Lydia was here right now. Of course he knew that she would come, but she needed to rewrite some exams and now he was the reason why she had to retake the exams later. He was the reason why she had to pay for another semester and he was the reason why she still wasn't finished with college. Stiles knew that he shouldn't think like that and that she would never blame him, but _he_ blamed _himself_. He knew Lydia, she probably was going to stay for a while, which he was entirely grateful for, but he also felt guilty because of it. Basically he was the reason why his dad wasn't going to work and earn money for a few days and he was the reason why Scott had to close the veterinary clinic during rush hours. It just wasn't fair.

Stiles sighed angrily and threw his right arm over his eyes. He hit the gauze on his head and a new wave of pain hit him. He cursed under his breath and a few hot and angry tears left his eyes. He quickly wiped them away before anyone could see them. They were all going to make it through this. They just had to.

And they would.

 


	6. Recovery at the Hospital

Noah stood at the coffee machine to get the hot chocolate Stiles had ordered. It was sickly sweet, but it was hot so maybe it was going to help with the unsease Stiles was feeling. Stiles hadn't told him about that, but Noah wasn't blind. He could clearly see how much Stiles was suffering. But he also knew that Stiles hated when someone would point that out, so he kept silent, even though it was killing him inside to see his son like that.

 

He returned back to the others. Scott and Lydia looked as tired as Noah was feeling. They all wanted to stay here for as long as possible, but by now it was already past visiting hours.

 

“Maybe we should head home soon”, Scott said quietly. Noah and Lydia nodded. Stiles was still weak and the last thing they all wanted was to stress him. Plus they needed some rest as well.

 

“I think you are right”, Lydia said and looked to Noah who nodded. She didn't want to leave Stiles, but she could barely stand straight without swaying, because all the adrenaline was finally leaving her body.

 

“Let's go then”, Noah said and opened the door to Stiles' room.

 

Stiles was awake this time and greeted them with a wide and tired smile. He still looked sick, but at least some colour had returned to his face and he wasn't white as a sheet anymore.

 

“Hey guys”, he said and his eyes lit up when he saw the cup in Noah's hand. He eagerly extended his right arm.

 

“We just wanted to tell you that we are leaving now”, Noah said and gave the hot chocolate to Stiles. The cup was shaking in Stiles' hand. Noah wanted to help, but didn't want to mother Stiles.

 

“Already?”, Stiles said with a frown and took a sip from the cup. He nearly sighed when the familiar flavour hit his tongue.

 

“Stiles, it is 10pm already”, Lydia said with a chuckle, “you should rest a bit.”

 

“I have been resting enough”, Stiles said and rolled his eyes. The hot chocolate was like heaven for his body. It regenerated his energy and made him feel warm inside.

 

“I think the doctors here know what they are doing”, Noah said with a smile, “he said that you _need_ rest and that means you _are_ getting rest. We'll talk about everything that had happened tomorrow. They said to not let you think too much for now.”

 

“That should be difficult”, Scott joked and they all huffed out a laugh.

 

“But your dad is right”, he continued, “relax a bit and then we'll talk tomorrow.”

 

“Ugh, fine”, Stiles said and sighed. But deep down he knew that they were right. Even though the sugary drink made him feel better immediately, he knew that in the long run he wasn't as fit as he thought.

 

“But...but you are coming back tomorrow, right?”, he swallowed hard.

 

“Of course!”, Noah said and sat on his bed to squeeze his leg, “we'll be here until you are released.”

 

Stiles smiled. He couldn't wait to get out of here and be home again. _Home_. Oh how much he had missed it. He couldn't wait to finally have a nice long shower and sleep in his own bed.

 

“Thanks for the hot chocolate, dad”, he said and Noah smiled at him.

 

“Should I bring anything from home? Do you need anything for tomorrow?”

 

“Mhm, no I think I am alright. I am leaving anyway so no point in bringing things back and forth”, Stiles said and took another sip.

 

“Okay, well then see you tomorrow”, Noah said and gave Stiles a kiss on his forehead. Stiles scrunched up his face in embarrassment, but secretly enjoyed it nonetheless.

 

“See ya”, he returned happily.

 

Scott bent down and hugged him tightly. He took a bit of pain away as well and Stiles sighed.

 

“Thank you”, Stiles whispered and Scott gave him a last squeeze before breaking the hug. Stiles saw him smiling down at him and he returned it. Scott took a step back to make room for Lydia.

 

“Bye”, Lydia said and bent down to kiss him. When she tried to pull back, Stiles pulled her even closer for a second and Lydia smiled into the kiss.

 

“See you tomorrow?”, he whispered hopeful. Stiles looked at her with those big eyes and Lydia knew she would do anything for him.

 

“Yeah, see you tomorrow”, she said and smiled when she saw his face lighten up. She pulled back and couldn't help herself and stroke over his cheek. It was bumpy from all the bruises, but it still felt like him. She smiled shyly and pulled back.

 

“Alright, now get out of here”, Stiles smiled waved with his hand. They all huffed out a laugh. Noah grabbed his book and with a last glance left the room. Lydia walked outside after him and thought about a way to bring up the topic of her staying in Beacon Hills for the night. She could go to her mum's house, but she hadn't called her yet and Lydia wasn't looking forward to explain the whole situation right now. But before she could think further Scott tapped her on the shoulder. Lydia looked at him.

 

“So...you want to stay at my place?”, Scott said with a smirk and Lydia was taken aback. She hadn't told anyone that she wanted to stay, but she should have guessed that they had known that she wouldn't just leave.

 

“That would be awesome, thank you”, she said genuinely and smiled shyly. Scott just nodded knowingly.

 

“Well then see you tomorrow guys”, Noah said with a tired smile, “I still need to fill out some stuff for his release.”

 

Lydia and Scott hugged him tightly.

 

“See you tomorrow sheriff”, Scott said and smiled back at him.

 

“Bye”, Lydia said and they walked in the opposite direction of the sheriff.

 

Scott and Lydia walked over the carpark to their cars. It was pitch black outside, except for some street lights. It had also become very cold and a cold shiver ran down her spine. Her car was parked a few feet away from Scott's. When she made it to her car she immediately started the engine. Cold air blasted into her face from the ventilation and she turned it down a bit. The car ride to Scott's house was not that far. Lydia followed Scott in her car and the sight of the familiar roads made her smile. They arrived at Scott's house and Lydia turned off the engine. She exited her car and took her stuff out of the trunk. She then walked up to Scott who carefully unlocked the door.

 

“My mum is asleep”, he whispered and Lydia nodded. They silently walked inside the house and Scott closed the door behind them.

 

“You want something to eat?”, Scott whispered.

 

“Sure”, Lydia whispered and smiled.

 

Scott went into the kitchen and got out some bread. Lydia followed him and opened the refridgerator to get cheese and ham. Together they worked in silence and made themselves a sandwich. They sat down at the kitchen table to eat and for a while nothing disturbed the silence except for the clock ticking in the distance. After they finished they cleaned the dishes and when Scott dropped the knife both held their breaths in anticipation. But nothing happened and both sighed. Melissa had been working for almost 24h and she deserved to have a bit of rest.

 

Scott took Lydia's bag and both went to Scott's room. He closed the door slowly and they sat on his bed.

 

“I am going to the bathroom for a quick second”, Lydia whispered and Scott nodded and smiled at her. She got up, grabbed her bag and made her way across the hall to the bathroom. She closed the door and switched on the light. The reflection in the mirror didn't look like her. Her hair was a comlete mess, tied up in a ponytail, but strands of hair had gotten loose and were framing her face in knots and curls. She looked tired, but that was no surprise, she was exhausted. Lydia quickly brushed her teeth and washed her face before going back to Scott's room. She saw him standing up and walking to the bathroom as well.

 

Scott had tried hiding his terror, but as soon as the bathroom door closed he let himself sink to the floor. Stiles was his brother and he just couldn't believe that he had survived another attack to his life _again_. Scott took some deep breaths and closed his hands to fists to stop them from shaking. He carefully got up and splashed his face with ice cold water. It helped a bit and he let out a breath he didn't know he had been holding. The look in his mirror scared him, because he looked nothing like himself. But they were all going to be fine. He was certain of that.

 

When Scott came back and both laid down on his bed. After all this time they had spent together they had no boundaries between them. She was like her brother and she loved him. They both trusted each other with their life and knew that this was rare. Lydia was so grateful for Scott. He always saw the best in people, which sometimes wasn't the best, but Lydia admired that. Scott also was so gentle and kind to everyone, just being here with her made her feel safe.

 

They both rolled around for an hour, unable to find sleep. When Lydia rolled back on her side she saw that Scott was still awake and looking at her as well. She timidly smiled at him and he did, too.

 

“Can't sleep?”, he whispered. Lydia shook her head. She sighed and squeezed her eyes shut, but she was too restless to sleep.

 

“He'll be fine”, Scott said after a while and Lydia looked back at him. From his expression she saw that he really believed that and that calmed her down a bit. She timidly nodded.

 

“I know”, she sighed and turned on her back again. She threw her left arm over her face and took some deep breaths. She was so exhausted, but somehow still couldn't find any sleep.

 

“Come here”, she heard him say and looked at him. He had opened his arms and Lydia immediately shuffled closer to crawl into them. Scott closed his arms around her and Lydia felt safe and warm. He ran his hand up and down Lydia's back and she practically melted deeper into his arms.

 

“Remember when one time he hit his head, but didn't want us to know? But then he just collapsed in my kitchen?”, Scott talked quietly.

 

“Which time?”, Lydia asked with a smile and both huffed out a laugh.

 

“All I want to say is that he can deal with everything”, Scott said, a smile still on his lips, “he will be fine.”

 

Lydia took a deep breath and exhaled in a sigh. She pressed herself deeper into Scott's arms and he held her even closer. His slow and steady heatbeat was calming in her ear. Lydia could finally feel sleep crawling up to her.

 

“His body is probably just exhausted from everything that had happened and that's why he is so weak at the moment, but he can make it”, he added.

 

“Yeah, I know.”

 

“And before you know it, he will be his old self”, Scott said with a smile and Lydia nodded at his chest in agreement. She sighed.

 

“I have to go back home tomorrow”, she said quietly, “my prof just wrote an email to me, saying that the stem cells have arrived. So I need to start with the experiments soon... I need to go back to prepare everything. It was expensive to get them...”

 

“I am sure, that he will understand that”, Scott said.

 

“I know he will”, Lydia said with a smile, “I just hate to leave him right now.”

 

“We'll take good care of him”, Scott said and squeezed her shoulders.

 

“That's not what I am worried about”, Lydia said and moved to look at him. Scott smiled at him and Lydia moved back into his arms. She couldn't hide the long yawn.

 

“Get some rest”, Scott whispered and continued to move his hand up and down her spine. She nodded and yawned again.

 

“You, too”, she responded and closed her eyes. And while Scott was drawing soothing circles on her back sleep finally rolled over her.

 

The sun woke them both up, they had completely forgotten to set an alarm. Lydia groaned and rolled around to check the time.

 

“Oh shit”, she muttered. She could hear Scott waking up next to her.

 

“What's wrong?”, he asked sleepily and yawned. Lydia rolled back around to look at him.

 

“It's 12:18pm”, she said and laughed, “we slept for a looong time.”

 

“Fuck”, Scott muttered under his breath and laughed as well. But Lydia felt so much better than yesterday. They had definitely needed that. Scott stretched and Lydia could hear his joints pop. He sighed deeply and then opened his eyes to look at her.

 

“Let's go then”, he said and Lydia nodded.

 

They made themselves breakfast, still being careful to not wake Melissa up. After that they got ready and were on the way to the hospital in an hour. They went in seperate cars again, since Lydia was going to drive home after Stiles' release. She had to be in the lab tomorrow morning. When they went into the hospital the usual buzz was happening again. They walked in silence to Stiles' room. Since they didn't see Noah anywhere they figured that he must be inside and knocked on the door.

 

“Come in”, Stiles called out and both went inside.

 

“Well look, who decided to join us”, Stiles said and smiled at them. He looked so much better than yesterday. They had changed his bandages and now some bruises were better recognizable. His head was still tightly wrapped in gauze though. His face was still covered in yellow and green spots, but his eyes were now glistering with the fire that Lydia loved so much.

 

“Oh shut up”, Scott said and laughed. He went up to the bed and hugged him tightly. Stiles' ribs still hurt, but it was managable now. Noah said in his usual chair next to Stiles and couldn't hide his laugh.

 

“Look who got his humor back”, Lydia returned with a smile and bend down to kiss him. Stiles held her face in his hands and returned the kiss.

 

“You have missed that, didn't you?”, Stiles said with a smirk and Lydia couldn't help but laugh at that.

 

“Maybe”, Lydia returned with a smirk as well and sat down on the bed to take his hand. He stroke over her skin. When she looked at him he had that soft private smile on his face, which just came out when he looked at her. Lydia's heart ached at the side of that and she squeezed his hand.

 

“Did you guys get some rest?”, Noah asked.

 

“Yeah, how about you?”, Scott said and Noah nodded.

 

“Well they woke me up every couple of hours, so that was fun...”, Stiles said and rolled his eyes.

 

“So, what's the plan for today?”, Scott asked.

 

“I already talked to the doctor, they want to do some final tests with him today and then he will be released”, Noah said and smiled at Stiles. God he missed his son being like that. Seeing him today and seeing him yesterday was a big difference. But today he felt like his old self and Noah was just so proud of him.

 

They were all quiet for a while.

 

“Soo...since you are all here...”, Stiles then said, “I am sure you wanna find out what happened?”

 

The atmosphere got tense immediately. Lydia swallowed hard and stroke her thumb over his hand. Noah was the first one to talk.

 

“Well...all we know is that a landmine went off”, he said quietly and looked at Stiles with a sorrowful expression. Stiles nodded.

 

“What else do you remember?”, Scott asked carefully.

 

“You don't have to talk about it”, Noah talked again.

 

“No, it's okay”, Stiles said and mindlessly caressed Lydia's hand. He cleared his throat and had his eyes fixed on a point on his blanket.

 

“I don't know all the details”, he started, “I must have lost consciousness pretty much in the beginning already...But...uhm...it had been one of our last patrols. We were just walking across a field. Bobby and I were joking around, but before we knew what was happening an explosion made us fly through the air.”

 

Stiles got more quiet with every sentence. He was still fixated on that one point on his blanket and didn't look up. He was just mindlessly dragging his thumb over Lydia's hand. Noah's face was a mask of sorrow and pain, Scott and Lydia just looked like they were about to cry again.

 

“And then things are starting to get blurry. I just remember bits and pieces after that”, Stiles said and scrunched up his brows, “I remember flying through the air and then hitting something. And then...it's just the sky and...and Lieutenant Toby and then strangers looking down at me and then...you.”

 

He looked at his dad who looked absolutely crushed. He leaned forward in his chair and laid a hand on Stiles' shoulder. Stiles shot him a small smile and the sheriff returned it. Stiles sighed deeply.

 

“That's all I remember”, he said with a shrug and finally looked at all of them.

 

“Do you know what happened to the rest? Like Bobby or David? Is everyone alive?”, Stiles looked at them hopeful, but his expression changed when he looked at his dad.

 

“Sorry son, they couldn't tell us anything else”, Noah said apologetically. Stiles took a deep breath.

 

“It's okay”, he sighed, but they could see that his mind was on overdrive right now. Stiles tried desperately to remember anything else. He had seen Lieutenant Toby, so that meant that he was alive, right? Why can't he remember anything else?? His head started to pound and he unconsciously scrunched up his face.

 

“Are you in pain?”, Lydia asked and she looked scared.

 

“It's nothing, I am fine, just my head”, Stiles said and placed a kiss on her hand. She smiled timidly at him and nodded.

 

“I could help you out with that”, Scott said, but Stiles shook his head.

 

“Seriously guys, it's fine”, he smiled. He saw his dad forcing a smile on his face as well. Before the atmosphere could get any more tense Stiles spoke again.

 

“So”, he tried a happier mood, “what did I miss?”

 

They all exhaled deeply and it was like some of the tension finally left their bones. Stiles hated to cause them so much worry.

 

“Well, I've got bad news”, Lydia said with a frown, “I have to leave tonight. My stem cells arrived and I need to prepare them for my experiments.”

 

Stiles was sad about that but he totally understood.

 

“That's okay! Don't worry about it, go and be a badass scientist”, he said with a smile and Lydia huffed out a laugh.

 

“Sorry...I wished that I could have stayed longer-”, she started again but he stopped her.

 

“No, seriously”, he said and she looked at him, “it's fine Lydia, I am just gonna go back home and then probably just be a lazy ass for a few days.”

 

Now Lydia was laughing and Stiles loved that sound.

 

“Yeah, we'll take care of him”, Scott said and Noah nodded. That made Lydia feel better. She knew that he would be in good hands, but she wished that she could have stayed at least for a little while longer.

 

“Okay”, Lydia smiled and Stiles squeezed her hand again.

 

“Scott, how is the veterinary clinic going?”, Stiles asked and Scott smiled proudly.

 

“It's going super well! Deaton had taught me all the tricks and he still visits sometimes. Luckily the list of supernatural clients I have right now is small, there are currently no big threats in Beacon Hills. So mostly I just treat normal animals”, he chuckled.

 

“That must be boring”, Stiles smiled.

 

They continued talking about Scott's job and then Lydia tried to explain her bachelor thesis to them. She could see that they really tried listening to her, but they didn't understand a thing that came out of her mouth. The entire time though Stiles was looking at her with such pride and love that she often lost her train of thought whenever she caught his glance.

 

Lydia was just in the middle of explaining her experiment again when the doctor came in. He saw them laughing and smiled when he approached them.

 

“I see you are feeling better, Mr. Stilinski”, he said.

 

“Sure am”, Stiles said with a big smile.

 

“Perfect”, the doctor smiled, “I am just going to ask you some questions and check your reflexes.”

 

He looked at Lydia and the others.

 

“Could you maybe wait outside?”

 

“Yeah, of course”, Noah said and shot Stiles a reassuring smile before getting up. Scott and Lydia did the same and walked out of the room. Scott silently closed the door after him. Lydia took a deep breath and crossed her arms in front of her chest.

 

“He looks better”, she breathed.

 

“Yeah”, Scott nodded and sighed as well. It was such a relief to see Stiles like that.

 

“He really does”, Noah said, “when I came here this morning he seemed...happier. I was so relieved.”

 

They all nodded. Of course Stiles wasn't fully healed, but at least his mood had lightened up.

 

“You guys wanna grab something to eat? I am sure that this will take a while”, Noah asked them.

 

“Sure”, Scott said and they all went to the cafeteria. They ordered coffees and bagels and sat down next to the window. They ate their lunch in silence, but they all enjoyed it. The buzz around them was calming in a way and distracted themselves from any negative thoughts. They stayed for an hour, just looking outside the window or listening to the people around them. When they walked back to Stiles room it was around 3pm. Stiles was about to get released at around 8pm, the rest of the day was spent with further tests, they wanted to make sure that Stiles was alright before sending him home.

 

Noah knocked at the door and a happy “yes?” replied. They all entered the room again and Stiles smiled at them.

 

“Hey guys!”, he said happily.

 

“Did everything go well?”, Noah asked and sat on his bed to take Stiles' hand.

 

“Yeah, it looks like everything is fine so far. He asked me some questions about the accident, but I couldn't remember more than what I have told you this morning. He said not to worry though, this wouldn't be unusual. Maybe they will return, maybe they won't”, he shrugged his shoulders, “but it doesn't matter now, it's over anyway.”

 

Noah nodded and squeezed his hand.

 

“That's true”, he smiled.

 

“So, you are okay?”, Lydia asked. Stiles saw that she was still worried and his heart hurt at the sight of that.

 

“Yes, I am okay”, he said and emphasized every word, Lydia forced a smile on his face.

 

“It's just small things, like sometimes I feel dizzy or sick, but that's all normal and nothing that won't go away, same as the headaches”, he smiled at her and he could see that she believed him.

 

“Did the doctor give you anything for it?”, she asked.

 

“Yeah, I am all good, don't worry about it”, Stiles smiled and Lydia nodded. It warmed his heart to see her care for him.

 

“Hey, can I maybe borrow your phone for a bit?”, he asked Scott, “I want to try to reach Lieutenant Toby, maybe he knows more about the others.”

 

“Yeah, of course”, Scott said and gave it to him.

 

“Thanks”, he looked at them all apologetically, “sorry guys, but could you maybe...”

 

“We'll be right outside”, Noah said and squeezed his shoulder.

 

“Okay”, Stiles said and smiled at them. They all left the room and Stiles took a few breaths to calm himself down. He had memorised Lieutenant Toby's number by heart, that had been one of the first things that they had ordered him to do. They had told him that this would be his only chance of survival when he would ever be in a dangerous situation.

 

Stiles dialed the number and tried to stop the shaking of his hands. He needed to know what had happened to the other guys, but he was also scared. The phone rang for a few times and Stiles thought that the Lieutenant wasn't there at the moment. But then the ringing stopped.

 

“Toby Robinson?”

 

“Lieutenant Toby? This is Stiles...uhm”

 

“Oh my god, hi! How are you?”, the Lieutenant's voice sounded happy.

 

“Yeah, I am good so far, sir. I have a few broken ribs, but nothing major”, Stiles was touched by Lieutenant Toby's reaction. It was so good to hear his voice, too. Stiles had feared for the worst.

 

“That's good to hear”, he said and Stiles could tell that he really meant it.

 

“Sir, I wanted to ask you about the others. How are they? Did....did they make it all out?”, Stiles held his breath and was anxious about the answer he would receive.

 

“Adam, David and Bobby are in the hospital as well, I believe their condition is similar to yours. The rest are fine though, we all made it out alive.”

 

“Oh thank god”, Stiles sighed deeply and closed his eyes. He didn't know that his body had been tense, but after hearing that answer he fell back into the pillow.

 

“Yeah they got nothing but a few bruises and a big scare”, Lieutenant Toby huffed out a laugh and Stiles did the same.

 

“So, you are okay?”

 

“Yes, I am, sir”, Stiles said and could hear him sigh as well.

 

“Good, that's good. Well...take it easy for a while, alright?”

 

“Will do sir, you too.”

 

“And call me when you know anything new, alright?”

 

“I will, thank you, sir.”

 

It was quiet for a while, none of them knew what to say.

 

“Okay, then take care of yourself Stilinski”, he said firmly, but there was a soft undertone to it. Lieutenant Toby had become a very good friend over the years and there had been many encounters where they had helped each other, either with war related stuff or just by being there as a friend.

 

“You too sir, bye”, Stiles said and hung up the phone. Stiles sighed deeply and put the phone on the table next to the bed. He felt better after that phonecall. It was such a relief to hear that the others are alive and well.

 

“Uhm...guys? You can come back in!”, he said loudly and he saw Scott's head peak around the corner. Stiles gave him a reassuring smile and then they all came back inside his room.

 

“Sorry I made you guys go outside again”, he said and really meant it.

 

“No, it's fine, don't worry about it”, Noah said and gave him a smile. They all went back to their usual place. Noah on the chair, Lydia on one side and Scott on the other side of his bed.

 

“What did he say?”, Scott asked when Stiles gave him his phone back.

 

“Everything is fine”, Stiles said with a smile, “a few of them are in a hospital as well, but nobody got hurt badly.”

 

“That's good!”, Scott said and Stiles nodded in agreement.

 

But Scott sensed that Stiles wasn't feeling well. He was anxious and scared, but was too good at hiding it, so only Scott knew. He thanked his abilities, because otherwise he wouldn't be able to notice the change in Stiles' feelings. Stiles had become too good at putting up a mask. Scott looked at Stiles and he shot him a small smile. Stiles knew that Scott had noticed the unease Stiles was feeling. Scott wanted to help Stiles, but also knew that he wouldn't want his dad or Lydia to know. He tried of a way to get the other two out of the room so that he could talk to Stiles alone, but nothing came to mind.

 

Stiles was talking to his dad, but kept shooting glances at Scott. He had no idea how to seperate them either. Stiles didn't want Lydia and his dad to worry about him even more, so telling him about the terror he felt in his bones definitely wasn't the right way.

 

The conversation between ended and silence followed. Scott looked at Stiles apologetically again, still no clue as to what do to and Stiles just gave him a tiny smile. But then the sheriff got up.

 

“I am just going to ask when you can go home”, Noah said and kissed Stiles on the forehead. He went outside the room and Lydia and Scott were alone with Stiles. _Mhm, that's convenient_ , Stiles thought to himself.

 

“Lydia could you maybe get me another hot chocolate? They really seemed to help last time”, Stiles asked and smiled at her.

 

“Sure”, she said and bend down to kiss him. She knew why he had asked her. Scott and Stiles both needed some time alone and she was totally fine with giving that to them.

 

“See you later”, she said and smiled at both of them before walking out of the door as well.

 

“Smart move”, Scott said and smiled knowingly at Stiles.

 

“Nah, she figured it out, I could see it in her eyes”, Stiles said and huffed out a laugh.

 

“So..what do you wanna talk about?”, Scott said quietly and moved the chair closer to Stiles' bed.

 

“Well...”, suddenly Stiles was at a loss for words. He cleared his throat, unsure how to start and what to tell him.

 

“You're scared”, Scott then said quietly and Stiles looked at him. Thankful that he had started the conversation.

 

“Yeah”, Stiles said and tried to sit upright. It still hurt like hell, but he tried nonetheless. Scott didn't stop him, knowing that Stiles would hate that. He just waited patiently for Stiles to talk again.

 

“It's just...I....”, Stiles sighed, “I...I don't want to go back.”

 

It was finally out of his mouth and Stiles felt tears in his eyes. But he wasn't bothered by that, since it was Scott who was right in front of him. Scott just nodded sadly.

 

“Just please don't tell them”, Stiles said and looked at him pleadingly.

 

“I won't”, Scott said quietly.

 

“I just hate this constant feeling of being under threat...I...I thought I was done with that”, Stiles said and wiped the tears off his face. Scott didn't know what to say and just nodded again. He knew that Stiles didn't expect him to say anything, he just needed to say it out loud.

 

“But well...I signed the contract, so...”, Stiles said and took a deep breath. Scott knew about this dilemma. Stiles loved and hated his job. And in moments like this the hate was stronger.

 

“We are all here for you, you know that, right?”, Scott said and took his hand. Stiles smiled.

 

“Yeah, I know”, he said quietly. Scott could hear Lydia coming back, but she stopped in front of the room and gave them some more time. Scott didn't know how she always knew things, but he silently thanked her for that.

 

“I am sorry, I just don't know what to say”, Scott said apologetically and wiped a tear off his face.

 

“There is nothing to say”, Stiles said and shrugged his shoulders, “heck I wouldn't even know what to say”, he laughed, but it sounded wrong. Scott did it as well.

 

“It just felt good to get if off my chest”, Stiles closed his eyes and smiled.

 

“Thank you”, he said and squeezed Scott's hand. Scott got up and gave him a big hug. Even though it hurt Stiles returned the hug fiercly and both stayed like this for a while. Scott broke the hug and wiped the tears off his face. Stiles did it too and then huffed out a laugh.

 

“Look at us”, he said and Scott chuckled. They stayed silent for a few breaths, lost in their own thoughts.

 

“Can I?”, Scott asked and his hand hovered over Stiles'. Stiles understood. He was so grateful that Scott asked before doing it.

 

“Okay”, Stiles said and Scott took his hand and focused. And then all the pain and unease that was inside Stiles' just went away. Stiles sighed deeply and closed his eyes. His exhaled shakily.

 

“Oh god”, he sighed and his whole body went slack. He hummed happily but then remembered where all the pain was going. It took great effort, but he opened his eyes and saw Scott gritting his teeth. Stiles wiggeled the hand Scott was holding to make him look at him. Scott did and then let go of Stiles' hand. A tiny wave of pain hit Stiles the instant Scott let go, but it was nothing in comparison to what he had felt before.

 

“Thank you”, Stiles said with a tired smile.

 

“You're welcome”, Scott smiled and steadied his breathing again. It had been a lot of pain, but thanks to his abilities most of it was already gone and he felt almost normal again.

 

“You okay?”, Stiles asked.

 

“Yeah I am fine”, Scott said with a smile.

 

“Good”, Stiles said and closed his eyes. He hummed happily and settled deeper into the blanket.

 

“You want me to go?”, Scott asked quietly.

 

“No”, Stiles sighed, his eyes were just tiny slits, “I am just gonna relax a bit. But you can go if you want.”

 

“I think I am just gonna stay”, Scott smiled and saw that Stiles had already fallen asleep. He leaned back in the chair, feeling a bit tired himself. He was sure that a few seconds wouldn't hurt and so he closed his eyes, unknowing that he was asleep in no time.

 

When Noah and Lydia walked back into the room, both were still asleep. Lydia had the hot chocolate still in her hand, but since it was cold by now she just drank it herself. She would get him a new one once he would wake up again. She talked to Noah in hushed voices until the doctor came in to pick Stiles up for his last head CT, just to make sure that the concussion had caused no further bleeding of his brain. The knock on the door woke Scott and Stiles up and they were very confused at first. Noah just laughed at the sight of that. The doctor wheeled Stiles out in his bed and he waved at them happily. The three of them continued to talk about this and that, waiting for Stiles to come back.

 

They came back about an hours later and the doctor gave them the good news. Stiles could go home.

 

 


	7. A New Beginning

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It is finally here, the last chapter :')  
> I really liked this story and neeeveerrr expected it to be this long whoopsies haha  
> But I hope you enjoyed it as well ♥

They were all thrilled to hear that Stiles could finally leave the hospital. The doctor told them that he still needed a lot of rest, but for now he could go home. The gauze around his head was finally gone as well. They exchanged it for a big white patch. Now they all could see how big the scar actually was and it covered almost half of his left side. The area around it was shaved and it made him look more fragile in a way. While his dad signed all the forms for the release Scott and Lydia stayed with Stiles in his room. They were just talking about the future when Scott's phone rang. He excused himself and got up to the window to answer the phone. Lydia and Stiles could hear him mumble and then the phone call was already over. Scott walked back over to them.

 

“Everything okay?”, Stiles asked him.

 

“Sorry guys, but I have to go to the clinic for a bit. Deaton just called, we have an emergency”, he said apologetically.

 

“Yeah sure, that's okay, everything good though?”

 

“Yes, it's nothing supernatural”, Scott smirked.

 

Lydia and Stiles exhaled in relief.

 

“I'll be quick”, Scott said and was already on his way out.

 

“No, no need, I am being released soon anyway. I will write you once I am home”, Stiles smiled and Scott nodded at him. He waved at Lydia and then walked out of the room.

 

“I still can't believe that he is a veterinarian with an own clinic”, Lydia smiled and shook her head.

 

“Yeah”, Stiles chuckled, “it feels like just yesterday we were playing Minecraft on my bed together!”

 

Lydia chuckled as well. She was sitting on his bed and straightening out the blanket in front of her. Stiles had noticed that she was more quiet than usual.

 

“So...”, he started quietly, “what's up with you?”

 

Lydia looked at him with a confused expression.

 

“What do you mean?”

 

Stiles just tilted his head and raised his eyebrows. Lydia sighed. Of course he had noticed that she hadn't been feeling well. She didn't want the focus on her so she hadn't said anything until now.

 

“It's just Uni stuff...I feel like...like I am not good enough or something since I failed my last two exams...”, she looked back at the blanket.

 

“You're kidding, right?”, Stiles huffed out a laugh, “you have made it this far, so why doubt yourself now?”

 

“I know, I know”, she smiled and sighed, “it's stupid...”

 

“It's not”, he said, “I totally get it. But I believe in you and so should you.”

 

Lydia looked at him with a soft smile. She bent down to kiss him deeply.

 

“You always know what to say, don't you?”

 

“Well, I am pretty smart”, Stiles said and both grinned.

 

“You sure you are going to be okay?”, she asked.

 

“Yes”, he said with a small laugh.

 

“Okay, sorry”, she laughed and pecked him on the lips, “well...I am gonna drive home back home then. I still need to prepare some stuff for tomorrow”

 

“Okay, drive carefully”, he said and took her face in his hands. He kissed her deeply.

 

“I will”, she said with a smile, “text me if anything happens, okay?”

 

“I will”, he returned and with a last kiss they parted. Lydia gathered her coat and squeezed his hand one last time.

 

Stiles was alone again and he was bored out of his mind. From all this laying in bed and doing nothing he actually felt restless. He just needed to see something else than these white walls and the same nurses every day. Stiles just couldn't wait to finally go home... He felt so much better than yesterday though. The pounding in his head was still there, but he didn't feel like it was going to explode. His ribs were still sore and sitting up hurt, but at least he could breathe almost normally again. His strength was coming back and more and more he felt like his old self again, which was a relief. Time passed but nobody came into his room. Stiles sighed. He just wanted to get out of here! Stiles thought of a way to occupy his mind. He started counting the tiles on his ceiling and then looked at his vitals. He found these machines super interesting so time flew by and before he knew what was happening there was a soft knock on the door and his father and the doctor came in. He greeted them both with a smile.

 

“Ready to get out of here?”, his dad asked with a smirk.

 

“Oh my god so ready”, Stiles sighed and rolled his eyes.

 

“Okay Stiles”, the doctor smiled, “everything looks very good, but remember you still need a lot of rest. And that means no long walks, not a lot of standing and no things that will stress your brain for at least the next few days. Sadly this includes watching TV and playing video games.”

 

“Ugh”, Stiles groaned. He had already been looking forward to just lay on the sofa and watch TV for hours and hours.

 

“I'll make sure he remembers that”, Noah said with a small chuckle.

 

“Perfect”, the doctor smiled, “then I'll see you back in about a week for a check-up. Remember to take some painkillers when it gets too bad. Tylenol should work best, I gave your dad a prescription for that.”

 

Stiles smiled at that. He knew that if things would go bad he could always rely on Scott for being his painkiller. A nurse brought in a wheelchair.

 

“Thank you”, Noah said and shook the doctor's hand. The doctor nodded and shook Stiles' hand before leaving the room.

 

The nurse disconnected Stiles from the heart monitor and brought the wheelchair closer to the bed. She left the room so that Stiles could get into his normal wear. It took longer than needed because his body was still sore and stiff. Finally he was all dressed and slowly got into the wheelchair. It took great effort and Stiles was exhausted afterwards. Luckily his dad didn't make any comments but Stiles could see that it hurt him as well to see Stiles like that. Noah called the nurse back in and they all walked towards the exit. They said goodbye to everyone and then the time had finally come. Stiles got up from the wheelchair on shaky legs. His dad was there the entire time, supporting his weight. They slowly walked out of the hospital and to his car. Noah had parked it next to the entrance so that the way wasn't too long.

 

He held the door open for Stiles who carefully sat down. His ribs were aching and his head was pounding but he was just so excited to go home. His dad shot him a reassuring smile before starting the engine and slowly started to drive. He made sure to not hit any big bumps on the road, but now and again the car was shaking. And everytime Stiles held his breath and it felt like his chest was being attacked by a thousand needles.

 

They arrived at the house a few minutes later and Stiles wanted nothing more than to lay down and ease the pain on his ribs. Before he freed himself from the seat belt his dad was already at the car door and held it open for him. Stiles rolled his eyes and laughed.

 

“Dad, I am not twelve, I can still open doors, you know?”

 

“Oh shut up and let me take care of you!”, Noah said but he laughed as well.

 

Noah helped his son into the house. Stiles' right arm was propped onto Noah's and Stiles basically leaned onto him with his entire weight. The second they walked through the front door Stiles was hit with a wave of the familiar scent of his dad and leather. He nearly sighed and just wanted to lay in his bed and to snuggle up in his blanket and pillows. Stiles was walking on shaky legs and Noah did his best to support his weight. Slowly they walked into his room.

 

“Still looks just like I remember it”, Stiles said quietly and Noah smiled.

 

“Of course”, he returned.

 

He slowly lowered Stiles onto his bed and under the covers. As soon as Stiles' head hit his own pillow he hummed happily. Noah smiled at that again and tucked him in. Stiles had his eyes closed and for the first time in a long time he felt completely content and peaceful.

 

“I'll bring you some painkillers, okay?”, Noah said quietly and Stiles nodded, “do you need anything else?”

 

“No, I am good”, Stiles said and hid a yawn. Just this little trip from the hospital to here exhausted him and the dull ache was pounding through his body again.

 

“Okay”, Noah said and went outside to get the painkillers and a glass of water. He quickly returned and gave them both to Stiles.

 

“Thank you”, Stiles said and smiled up at him.

 

“Get some rest”, Noah said and stroke over his buzzcut. Stiles just snuggled closer into the blanket, a soft smile still on his lips. Noah quietly exited the room and closed the door behind him. He continued to take all the stuff out of the car and then went back into the kitchen. Noah made himself something to eat and then sat in front of the TV. He turned the volume on low so that Stiles could sleep. The doctor had told him to wake Stiles up every few hours, so he set a timer. His concussion was healing nicely, but Stiles still needed a lot of rest and care. So everytime his timer rang he went up, walked into Stiles' room and asked him some questions. Of course Stiles just groaned everytime because he just wanted to sleep, but he knew that it had to be done.

 

The next morning Stiles called Lydia and Scott to let them know that he was okay. He had texted them yesterday when he had arrived home, but after that he had been so tired that they hadn't really talked much. Lydia was about to walk into the lab to start with her experiments and she was so excited that she just couldn't stop talking. Hearing how excited she was made him feel fuzzy in his stomach because he was so happy for her. Scott and him just talked a bit and he promised to come over for the afternoon. Stiles spent the morning slowly walking around the house and it made him feel so much better! He was finally able to do stuff by himself again. Later he made lunch for his dad and him and then texted Lieutenant Toby the news of his release. Overall it was the most relaxed day he had in a while.

 

His dad made sure that he had everything he needed. He was still off of work for 2 days and he was determined to take care of Stiles as best as he could. Stiles appreciated it, it felt so good to be cared for by someone. In the afternoon he took a nice long shower and it made him feel almost new again. The look in the mirror scared him for a second because the left side of his chest was still yellow and green, same as his face. Stiles tilted his head to get a better look at the big bruise on his scalp. He sighed. This was going to leave an ugly mark. Another thing that would paint his body. It's not like it was already scarred enough.

 

A few hours later the front door bell rang and Stiles opened the door to greet Scott with a big smile.

 

“Hey man, you look good!”, Scott said and pulled him in a big hug.

 

“Thanks”, Stiles said and returned the hug.

 

They both went to the kitchen to grab something to drink and then went to Stiles' room. They sat on the bed and both sighed , which made them chuckle.

 

“So how are you holding up?”, Scott asked him with a small smile.

 

“Yeah, good”, Stiles said and he really meant it. He was feeling more like himself again with every passing minute.

 

“No more pain? Or do you need help?”

 

“No, I am good, I mean yeah of course it still hurts, but the painkillers are pretty good at their job”, Stiles said with a shrug. Scott nodded, satisfied with that answer.

 

“Listen...uhm...”, Stiles started and was fidgeting around with the blanket, “I need your help.”

 

“Sure, anything you need”, Scott said and shuffled closer to Stiles. Stiles looked at him and took a deep breath.

 

“Okay, so I kinda want to ask Lydia to marry me”, he then said shyly and smiled at Scott. Scott sucked in a big breath and smiled back at him.

 

“Oh my god, finally!”, Scott laughed and Stiles exhaled deeply, “that's so exciting! How are you feeling?”

 

“I am so nervous, I feel like I am gonna vomit”, Stiles laughed and put his hand over his face.

 

“But I feel like it's time, you know?”, he continued, “I just don't know when... like before I go back or when I return...because...what if...”

 

“Yeah I know what you mean”, Scott said quietly. Stiles just shrugged and went back to straightening out the blanket in front of him.

 

“Have you already decided on a ring?”, Scott talked again, trying to lighten the mood.

 

“Yeah, I send my dad to pick it up a few weeks ago”, Stiles smiled and went to open his bedside drawer. He picked up the small black satin box and opened it. Inside were two wedding bands in gold. They were simple and had just a small stone embedded in them. Scott took the box and looked at the bands more closely. Inside of the ring was the engraving of a small outline of a heart.

 

“You think she will like them?”, Stiles said and looked at Scott.

 

“Yeah”, Scott said genuinely, “she definitely will.”

 

“Good, good”, Stiles exhaled and took the box again. He placed it back into the drawer.

 

“I can't believe that after all these years...”, Scott started and Stiles huffed out a laugh in response.

 

“Yeah, you and me both buddy!”

 

“I mean...remember your 10-year-plan?”, Scott smirked and Stiles just laughed.

 

“Oh my god, yes! Well it took a bit longer.”

 

Scott laughed as well. Stiles got super excited and told Scott all about his plan. Like how he wanted to go to the park Lydia and him always went. And how they would go to a restaurant afterwards. Stiles was basically gleaming with joy and Scott was so relieved to see him like that. The last few weeks definitely hadn't been easy for Stiles, but when he talked like that it was like all of it had never happened.

 

Scott left after a few hours again and after talking to him Stiles felt just so happy. There was nothing better than a good talk with your buddy to save the day. The rest of the day was spent with walking around town. He finally felt strong again and it was so beautiful outside, he just _had_ to leave the house, at least for a few minutes. Stiles grabbed his phone and his headphones and enjoyed the sun on his face. He was just about to reach the park when his phone rang.

 

“Hey dad, what's up?”, he asked cheerful.

 

“Hey, there is a soldier waiting for you here, when are you coming home?”

 

Stiles was confused and his heart rate accelerated. Why would a soldier come to his house? Are they taking him back already? But his dad didn't sound sad, so Stiles figured that it probably wasn't that bad. Still, it was weird.

 

“Uhm, yeah sure. I'll be home in about 10 minutes.”

 

“Okay perfect, see you”, his dad responded and hung up the phone.

 

Stiles walked home a bit faster, his mind was a total mess and he couldn't really form a clear thought. He arrived back at his house and took a few steadying breaths before opening the front door. He could hear his dad and a stranger talking in the living room. They seemed to have a total normal conversation so Stiles forced himself to calm down. He walked around the corner and found them sitting on the table with coffees in front of them.

 

“Hey, there you are”, his dad smiled and the soldier got up.

 

“Hey, what's going on?”, Stiles said and shook the hand the soldier held out.

 

“I don't know”, his dad shrugged his shoulders and Stiles could tell that he was confused as well.

 

“My name is Lieutenant Smith and I was send here to give you guys the good news”, he said with a smile and both Noah and Stiles were even more confused now.

 

“Soldier, I am here to inform you that you are officially released from your service. We thank you for everything you have ever done and will forever be grateful for that”, he continued.

 

Stiles and Noah were speechless.

 

“I...uhm...what?”, Stiles didn't know what to say. He was just so confused.

 

“Oh my god, that's wonderful!”, Noah said and his whole face lit up.

 

“After that accident of yours we decided to release you. But don't worry this is nothing bad, it is not meant to dishonor you in any way”, Lieutenant Smith must have noticed Stiles' state of mind.

 

“Okay...uhm....yeah, perfect”, Stiles said and his whole body was tingling. He was free? He looked at his dad who was still gleaming with joy. Stiles huffed out a laugh, because this here was all so unreal.

 

“This deserves a party!”, his dad said happily and got up to go into the kitchen, “who wants a beer?”

 

“I am sorry, but I am at work”, the soldier laughed.

 

“Yeah dad and I am still not really recovered and-”

 

“Oh yeah right, right, sorry”, Noah laughed and stopped in his tracks. He was just way too excited.

 

“I should probably get going. I will get back to you with all the paperwork”, Lieutenant Smith said and got up. They all shook hands.

 

“Thank you so much”, Stiles said and he really meant it.

 

“Thank you for your service”, he just responded and then walked out of the door. The door closed and it was quiet for one second. Then his dad surged forward to hug him tightly. Stiles returned the hug fiercly. A few happy tears escaped his eyes and he couldn't stop smiling. Noah broke the hug, took Stiles' face in his hands and then hugged him again. He was crying and laughing at the same time. Noah broke the hug for a second time and took a few steps back.

 

“I am gonna order pizza!”, he said happily and already left the room to grab his phone. Stiles laughed. Seeing his dad so happy was an amazing feeling. Stiles had missed seeing him like that.

 

“We need to celebrate!”, Stiles heard his dad shout from the kitchen, which made Stiles laugh even more.

 

“I'll text Scott and tell him the good news”, Stiles shouted back.

 

“Yes, perfect, invite Melissa and him over for dinner!”, he heard back from the kitchen.

 

Still smiling Stiles picked up his phone to text Scott. It took five minutes and his phone rang. Stiles happily answered the phone and had Scott's excited voice on the other end of the line. Stiles just couldn't stop smiling and his cheeks were starting to hurt. It seemed like Scott wasn't feeling any different. He kept saying “oh my god” and “I can't believe it”.

 

Scott and Melisssa came over about an hour later and by then Noah had picked up the pizzas. Scott almost crushed Stiles in his arms when he hugged him and Melissa gave him a kiss on the forehead before tightly hugging him as well. They all went to the living room and the room was soon filled with laughter and even more happy tears. Melissa had brought a bottle of wine, but it was alcohol free so that even Stiles could drink something. After they had talked for an hour or so Stiles stood up.

 

“I am just gonna call Lydia, she should be home by now”, Stiles said and excused himself to go out of the room. He dialed her number and waited for her to pick up.

 

“Hey Stiles, what's up?”

 

“Hey you”, he answered happily, “so far so good. How is the experiment going?”

 

He heard Lydia sigh.

 

“It's tough. It's not really working like we want it to, but we are gonna make some adjustments and hope that it works out better.”

 

“That sounds good!”

 

“Yeah and oh, you know what? I can rewrite the exams already in a few weeks! So I am not losing any time.”

 

“Lydia, that's perfect! I am so happy for you”, Stiles said genuinely. He was so relieved, that Lydia wasn't losing any time because of his accident.

 

“Soo...I also have news”, Stiles said with a smirk.

 

“What news?”, Lydia asked.

 

“Well I got a visit from a soldier and he basically told me that they are releasing me from my service.”

 

Stiles could Lyida hold her breath.

 

“They are?”, she asked breathlessly.

 

“Yep”, Stiles said happily, “something about serving my duty and about my recent accident.”

 

“Wow...uhm...that's amazing Stiles!”, Lydia laughed, “how are you feeling?”

 

“Weird”, Stiles laughed as well, “but it feels like such a relief.”

 

“Oh yeah I believe you!”

 

“I know you have a lot of stuff to do with Uni and Exams and stuff but...I could come over tomorrow after you are finished with your lab work.”

 

“I'd love that”, Lydia said with a smile.

 

“Perfect! I'll text you when I start driving. Love you.”

 

“Love you, too.”

 

Stiles hung up the phone, still smiling. He went back into the living room where his dad and Melissa were laughing about something. Stiles sat back onto the sofa next to Scott and took another piece of pizza. He felt so weightless.

 

When he woke up the next morning he couldn't wait to get into his car and drive to Lydia, but he knew that she was still at work. He cleaned his room a bit and listened to some music while he did it. His ribs weren't hurting that bad anymore, it was more like a bit of pressure he was feeling. And his head had finally started to clear up. After some time Stiles whistled to the songs and danced around his room. At around 4pm his phone made a sound and he saw a text from Lydia.

 

< _I am already finsihed, you can come now ♥_ >

 

A huge grin was forming on his face and he grabbed his bag and started packing.

 

< _I am on my way now!_ >

 

When he arrived at Lydia's dorm he practically sprinted up the stairs. Lydia's door was already open and she was standing in the door frame, widely smiling from one ear to another. Stiles surged forward and tightly wrapped his arms around her. They were both laughing and walked inside her apartment without letting go of each other. Stiles closed the door with his foot. Lydia sighed happily and held him even closer. She broke the hug and took his face in his hands to give him a passionate kiss. Stiles returned it the same way. Lydia looked at him with so much love in her eyes that Stiles' stomach twisted and turned.

 

Stiles had removed the patch from his scar and now Lydia could see the entire size of it. It was splitting his left side of the scalp in half and was jagged and bulky. The scar was coloured in deep pink and the area of his head around it was shaved. She raised her hand, but just stroke the hair next to the scar.

 

“Yeah...I know”, Stiles forced a smile on his face and looked down. But Lydia just took his face in her hands.

 

“You are beautiful”, she just said and kissed him again. Stiles just huffed out a laugh and stroke over her cheek before he returned the kiss.

 

They talked about Lydia's experiment and what she had already done. It was super interesting and Stiles asked a lot of questions. Lydia appreciated all of them and tried her best to answer them all. The more she talked about it, the more her experiment made sense to her and in the middle of it she had another idea for how to improve it. They cooked some lunch and watched another movie.

 

Afterwards they laid in bed together. Stiles had his eyes closed, but a soft smile was an his face. Lydia was stroking over his skin, the same smile on her face. She was careful not to touch and scars, she didn't want him to think about that stuff right now. As always they were both just in their underwear and she could see the faint yellow glow his chest still had. She could tell that he hated the way it looked and placed a kiss on his chest. Stiles opened his eyes and found her looking up at him. He forced a smile on his face before kissing her as well. Lydia laid back down and continued stroking his skin and he relaxed back into her touch. They fell asleep in each others arms.

 

The next day Lydia had to go back to her lab and so Stiles drove back to Beacon Hills. His dad was now working, because he couldn't afford to stay away that long from work. Stiles hoped that he could retire soon, he wanted his dad to have a few peaceful and calm years. Stiles knew that his dad loved his job with all he had. He loved that he could help people and to help protect this town. Nowadays Scott and the sheriff were in close contact and so Beacon Hills became more and more peaceful. But Noah just deserved to finally find some peace.

 

Stiles went back to the hospital after a week for his final check-up. They did some tests again, but everything seemed to heal perfectly. When the doctor told him the good news Stiles sighed deeply. He would always have scars to remind himself of what he had gotten through, but that was nothing he could change. Immediately after the appointment he called his dad and heard him sigh in relief as well. It was finally over.

 

Stiles had talked to Bobby a few times and they both wanted to visit Sam's parents. They felt like they owed his parents to tell them how he had died. Bobby had called them prior and they had arranged to meet up in two days. When Stiles arrived home from the appointment he went to his room and just closed the door. He wanted to be by himself for a while, these last days had been super stressful and he just needed some time to relax.

 

He remembered that his doctor had prohibited him to stress his brain too much, so reading or watching movies were out of the question. So he took a few pieces of blank paper and his headphones and went back into bed. Stiles sat at the wall, started a song and then just started drawing. In the beginning he didn't really know how to start, but then it was like his feelings were pouring out on paper. And then he could hear the front door close. He removed his headphones and listened.

 

“Dad?”, he asked.

 

“Yes, I am home”, Noah replied and Stiles could heart the fridge open.

 

Stiles put his phone and his drawing stuff away and went downstairs to greet his dad.

 

A few days later Bobby rang his doorbell and together they drove to Sam's parents. They were both super nervous and their hearts hammered in their chests. But Sam's parents were clearly nervous as well. The sorrow was still all over their faces and the mum hugged them both tightly. They all sat down at the kitchen table and at first the atmosphere was tense, but then Sam's parents told happy stories about the past and the mood lightened up a bit. Soon they came to the reason for their visit and Stiles and Bobby told them everything they knew. They said that Sam had been a wonderful human being who always made sure that his friends were cared for. A few tears were shed, but it felt good to cry. It was like this was the final step to processing it all.

 

The ceremony for their release was beautiful. Lydia, Scott and Melissa were there too. They were sitting next to Noah who was gleaming with pride for his son. Lieutenant Toby got his honorable discharge for his actions. Stiles couldn't stop smiling. When they all fired their canons goosebumps were forming on his skin and he felt strangely proud for being part of something bigger. And now he could finally do something for himself again. Thanks to the Army a significant part of his college tuition was already paid and he was so excited to start his studies in the next year, but he first wanted to relax. Stiles had been writing applications to various colleges over the past weeks, of course for a degree in Law Enforcement. A bachelor degree in Law and Society to be exact.

 

Since Lydia would finish her degree next semester they planned on going on vacation for a few days. Lydia's experiment was still going, but she took a few days off and together they drove into the mountains to the hotel. The nature there was beautiful. The hotel had everything they needed, a huge wellness program and amazing food. The entire time they just ate and slept and did it all over again the next day. It felt so good to be by themselves and just enjoy each others company. Sadly Stiles' nightmares still weren't gone and Lydia's heart ached whenever he woke up in cold sweat, but luckily they had become less and less lately. Slowly he was getting into his own rhythm again and he felt himself relax more and more. He had finally realised that the whole Army thing was over and settled back into his old life.

 

And then the day was finally here. Stiles was going to ask Lydia to marry her. And he was terrifed! He figured that she would say yes, or at least he hoped so. But if she had stuck around for so long, she was probably here to stay. Right? Him and Lydia were going to meet up today just like they always did. He took the box with the rings out of the drawer and looked at them one last time. Stiles inhaled shakily.

 

“Well...here goes nothing”, he said to himself and put the little box in his pocket. Stiles took a jacket and his keys and went outside to his car. He arrived at Lydia's dorm and she was already waiting for him at the entrance.

 

“Hey you”, she greeted him with a smile and he kissed her.

 

“Hey”, he returned.

 

She took his hand and together they walked into town. Stiles tried desperately to find a way to get Lydia to the park without raising suspicion. They were probably going to walk there anyway, but what if not? Stiles wanted this day to be perfect. He wanted to go to the park just before the sun was about to set, so they had to find a way to spent time for the next 2 hours. Which shouldn't be too hard, right? Right? His heart was racing because he was so nervous! He hoped that Lydia wouldn't notice anything.

 

They first went into the bookstore and talked to Adam for a bit. Both of them needed new books and luckily Adam knew exactly which one they needed. They then just strolled through the city and Stiles kept glancing at the sun to see how fast it was setting. He figured it was time to go to the park and was beyond relieved when Lydia suggested it herself. The closer they got to the park the more his hands were starting to sweat. To make her not suspicious he entangled their hands and moved it to her hips. Lydia didn't seem to mind and just did the same.

 

They arrived at a bench and both sat down. The wind was blowing through the trees and some birds were chirping. The sun was almost in the perfect spot and-

 

“You okay?”, Lydia suddenly asked him.

 

“Yeah sure, why?”, he said quickly. Maybe too quickly.

 

“You're face is almost drained of color and your hands are sweating”, she said and looked genuinely concerned.

 

“What no, I am fine”, he said and pulled her closer. She didn't look convinced though. Stiles didn't want to scare her so he took a deep breath and loosened the embrace again.

 

“Okay”, he said and wiped his hands on his jeans. He took another deep breath and motioned for Lydia to stand up with him. She just looked so confused.

 

“Okay...so...uhm”, Stiles started and cleared his throat.

 

“So we have known each other for a while now and...”, he continued and could see that slowly things were starting to make sense in Lydia's mind.

 

“And I really really like you and...uhm...”, he reached into his pocket to pull the box out.

 

Lydia sucked in a big breath and threw her hands over her mouth. Tears were starting to form in her eyes and she couldn't stop the huge grin forming on her face. Stiles started kneeling down and opened the box. Lydia let out a big sob.

 

“No, no, oh my god, don't cry!”, Stiles said and started to stand up again, but then decided against it and kneeled back down.

 

“Wait, just let me finish, okay?”, he asked breathlessly and Lydia could only nod.

 

“Lydia Martin? You are one of the most important persons in my life and you are the light on my horizon. I can't imagine a life without you...Will you marry me?”, he said and was out of breath afterwards.

 

“Oh my god”, Lydia just said and Stiles chuckled.

 

“So I kinda need an answer for that question”, he said and Lydia laughed at that.

 

“Yes, yes! Of course I will marry you!”, she said and her voice broke at the end.

 

“Yeah?”

 

“Yes!”, she said again and laughed.

 

Stiles got up and took one ring out of the box. His hands were shaking but Lydia's were too.

 

“It's beautiful”, she whispered and Stiles smiled at her.

 

“You like them?”

 

Lydia nodded. The tears were still falling down her face, but at least she had stopped sobbing.

 

“I am glad”, Stiles said softly and smiled. Lydia looked up from her hand and smiled at him as well. She took his face in her hands and kissed him deeply.

 

Later that night they were laying in bed, arms wrapped around each other and Lydia's head was on his chest. The ring was laying on her bedside table. She was looking at it, a soft smile still on her face. Stiles had added another engraving so now the date of their engagement was on the inside of the ring as well. Stiles had the same expression, but his eyes were closed and he was slowly dragging his fingers over Lydia's arm. It was a feeling of total peace.

 

“Did you ever think we would end up here?”, she said quietly after a while.

 

“Mhm”, Stiles said and his chest rumbled.

 

“Really?”, Lydia huffed out a laugh and moved her head off his chest to look at him. He opened his eyes to tiny slits and looked at her. Then he took a deep breath and pulled her back to his chest.

 

“Yeah, I had a plan”, he said.

 

“You had a plan?”, Lydia chuckled.

 

“Mhm”, Stiles said again.

 

“Of course you did”, Lydia laughed and Stiles' chest rumbled when he laughed as well. He kissed her on the head and Lydia closed her eyes and smiled.

 

Now they could finally start their future.

 


End file.
